


His Last Masterpiece

by Quietest_Rebellion



Category: The Evil Within (Video Game)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Mild Language, basically a re-write of the game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2019-04-17 21:53:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 28
Words: 56,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14198460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quietest_Rebellion/pseuds/Quietest_Rebellion
Summary: At first you only agreed to stay with him for protection from the rest of the world. The decision was fairly simple. Be ripped apart by monsters, or become his muse? Obviously you picked the latter. Had you known it would lead to this, you may not have.





	1. Your Predicament

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You try to figure what to do about the situation you've found yourself in.

You gasped as you finally realized what this might be. Why you've been so weak. Why you've been feeling so off. Why it seemed like you were gaining weight. You were pregnant.

Your hand shot up to your mouth in surprise. Surely this wasn't it. You couldn't possibly be. As you thought more about it, you realized how likely it was that your guess was correct. You slowly wrapped your arms around your abdomen. You couldn't believe it. “This can't be happening.” repeated in your head like a heartbeat.

One thing was for sure. You couldn't let him know. The father. The photographer that kept you here. Stefano Valentini.

At first you only agreed to stay with him for protection from the rest of the world. The decision was fairly simple. Be ripped apart by monsters, or become his muse? Obviously you picked the latter. Had you known it would lead to this, you may not have.

The first few days (weeks? You weren't sure) were simple. He would do things like cover you in blood and flower petals and take photos. As time went on he became more violent. Cutting you with his knife. But you were still grateful that you never became one of his “masterpieces.” For the time, he had been satisfied. But Stefano continued becoming more aggressive. Sometimes you could hardly tell that he was just a man. Not one of those _things_ out in the streets. You could practically see the lust in his eyes. The desire, the need. Eventually, he succumbed to it. And after that, he didn't hurt you quite as much. Granted he was a violent lover. But he didn't cut you the way he had before. No, at times it seemed like Stefano almost _cared about you._ The idea was odd in itself. But at times, you almost found yourself caring about him.

However, you still knew he was a monster. A psychopath with a camera. He had taken apart women and put them back together again, attaching a camera. Creating a human tripod that ran about taking pictures for him. He called it “Obscura.” You called it “Horrible.” He thought it was beautiful. You thought it was a reminder of this nightmare.

You knew for sure he could not find out about you. About this child you now carried. (Probably. You still weren't entirely sure.) You had to escape. Of course you had no clue how to even attempt this. It seemed the man knew where you were 24/7. And you _never_ knew where he was. Not to mention the teleporting, and the literal eye in the sky. But you still knew you'd find a way.

 

~*~*~*~

 

You awoke to a quick knock on the door. Of course, the knocker didn't wait for a response. In walked the familiar Italian in his blue suit. (Or was it purple? Sometimes the light tricked you.) You sat up at his approach. You didn't want to make eye contact, but when he reached you he lifted your chin to meet his gaze.

“You seem especially beautiful this morning, _amore_.” His smooth voice sent shivers down your spine as his cold eye stared into your two.

“Thank you, Stefano.” You muttered, glancing to the side.

“I think we should go on a stroll through the town. I've found myself to have artist’s block, as of late. The Lost should serve as some lovely inspiration.” As he said this, he walked over to your closet. Talking with his hands, as usual.

“Even the great Stefano gets artist's block?” You asked. Only recently had you become brave enough to joke around like that. He chuckled. You felt butterflies in your stomach.

“Unfortunate, is it not?” Stefano rummaged through your closet until he found something he deemed suitable. A blue dress with black detailing. It went well with his suit. Of course. He handed you the garment and kissed your hand. “I shall return within the hour. I have some business I must attend to.”

“The preacher?” You questioned. You weren't sure what else to call the man. He was dark, and mysterious, quite like Stefano. But in a different sense. He seemed to you as someone who was a lot more stern. Who always got what he wanted. Unfortunately, you had never managed to catch a name.

“No, I have another guest today.” Stefano replied as he opened the door. He sounded amused with this fact, and you pitied the poor soul about to meet him. “Be ready before my return.” He closed the door behind him and you could hear the signature “fsh” noise as he teleported away.

You looked at the dress again, remembering your decision of the night before. That you would escape. As you began to change your clothes, you thought it over some more. “We’re going into Union. I'll be out of this prison. Possibly out of the view of his “masterpieces.” He would never assume I’d run away. After all, I chose to stay with him.” You continued this conversation with yourself as you washed your face in the bathroom next to your room. “He focuses so much on taking pictures. I could just run off. Take off these stupid heels and run.” Where you would go after that, you didn't know. Maybe to the preacher? No, you imagined he'd be worse than Stefano had ever been. “Maybe if I just find a house on the edge of town and barricade all of the doors and windows, I’ll be okay?” You thought. After all, it didn't appear like you actually needed food or water in this strange world.

Only minutes after you finished getting ready, Stefano returned. He wrapped an arm around your waist and soon you were both in the middle of the town. He held your hand as you began to walk. The town seemed even more decrepit than the last time you had seen it. It was breaking off into pieces now. Even some walls had been broken down. By Stefano's “Guardian,” no doubt. It was a mess. Stefano sighed in delight as you walked.

“It is a wonderful day, no?” He looked down at you as he spoke. You didn't reply. Just kept walking. His eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn't quite seem angry.

It didn't take long for Stefano to find some inspiration. A member of the town security detail being chased by the Lost. Stefano began to focus his camera, prepared to capture the very second they ripped the man apart. You couldn't stand to watch, and the idea made you feel dizzy. It was then you noticed Stefano had let go of your hand. This was your chance. You had seconds to prepare yourself. Not taking your eyes off of him, you quietly slid off your shoes and set them down. You began by backing away, and after about five steps you set into a dead sprint. The debris covered road cutting your feet. As you ran, you could hear the security guard screaming. Followed by the sound of the camera’s flash. Knowing that he would turn around, you ducked into an alley. Of course you didn't attempt to stop running. Even though it seemed harder than ever to catch your breath. You weaved between the buildings. The sound of Stefano teleporting and calling for you filled your ears. His cries were full of anger. But something else as well. You couldn't place it. It wasn't long before maniacal laughter and the buzzing of a saw to joined the chorus of sounds.

“Shit!” Now you were screwed. The first door you came across, you tried the handle to no avail. “Okay, next door.” You reassured yourself. Luckily, the next door came open. You slammed it shut and locked it. Running into the basement of the building. At the bottom of the staircase was a door with some red paint on it. You didn't bother trying to figure out what the paint meant, you simply ran in and locked that door behind you as well. Quickly, you hid under the first desk, or table or whatever it was that you saw. Curling up as tightly as you could. You waited for the sounds to stop.

 

* * *

 

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	2. Safe House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You learn you may have some allies in this horrible world.

It felt like it had been hours since you had come into the room. You thought you could still hear Guardian out in the distance. Or maybe it was your mind tricking you again? But you figured you were safe for the moment. Crawling out from your hiding spot, you looked around. Apparently, you had been hiding under a workbench of some sort. Off to the side was a coffee maker and a computer. On the workbench were blueprints for various guns and tools scattered about. What was this room for? You didn't think too much more on it and sat down at the computer. The symbol you saw painted on the door appeared on the screen. What did this all mean? As soon as the thought entered your mind, you could hear someone trying at the door. You ducked back under the workbench, hitting your head as you did. You bit down on your lip to hold back any noise you might have made.

Whoever it was must've had a key. After some distinct jingling, the door opened. They slammed it shut behind them and you heard a click as they pulled a gun out of it's holster.

“Damn…” they said to themselves. You determined it must be a man. You could only see his legs at this point. Was he wearing… a military uniform? No that couldn't be it. But it looked familiar. You knew if you saw the top you would recognize it. You were just about to make your presence known as you heard banging above you. “Great, now what?” you thought. Soon, the door began to creak open. “Don't come any closer!” The man shouted. He sounded young, and scared. He certainly wouldn't be much help in your predicament.

“Okay, calm down!” Yelled another male voice from behind the door. “Don’t shoot.” He said this a bit calmer. “I'm not gonna hurt you. See?” You watched a gun slide across the floor towards the younger man. “You can lower your gun. I’m on your side.”

“... You're not Mobius.” Stated the first man. Mobius? What was he talking about? “You might not be one of those things… but that doesn't mean you're on my side.” You supposed he had a point. Ever since people started turning into the Lost, it seemed like it was every man for themselves.

“You're right. I don't work for Mobius. But I was sent here by them.” The second man took a step forward.

“Have you seen what those things out there…? What they can do!?” You could hear the younger man point his gun again.

“Yeah, I have. Lucky for you, your partner was willing to sacrifice himself so you could escape.” The older man sounded angry. You couldn't blame him if what he was saying was true. Was that the man Stefano was getting pictures of?

“He wasn't my partner. He was just a member of Union's security detail.” You could hear the pain in the younger man’s voice. “Protecting me… was his job. My job is to solve a hardware issue. Dying inside here is above my pay grade.” You noticed the second man take a couple steps forward. “I'm not a soldier, I'm just a technician.”

“I know…” the tone of the older man’s voice frightened you. Were you about to witness a murder? The man quickly stepped forward.

“S-Stop! Or I’ll shoot!” You heard a yelp as the younger man bent over and the older quickly backed away. You assumed he was now holding the gun.

“... A soldier would have taken the safety off. I told you we’re on the same side.” You quietly breathed a sigh of relief. “Let's try this again. I’m Sebastian Castellanos.”

“I’m O’Neal. Liam O’Neal.” The name Castellanos sounded familiar, but you couldn't quite place it. Along with many other things in this place. As you thought it over, you tuned out the rest of their conversation. It wasn't until they came closer you even noticed they were still talking.

“You know you're being watched right?” Sebastian asked O’Neal. Your heart started to race.

“What? Nothing should be able to get in here, it's a safe house for Mobius operatives!”

“You can come out now. I assume you're not one of those things.” Sebastian told you. After a minute you started to crawl out from under the table. Your head throbbing slightly where you hit it.

“How did you get in here?” O’Neal asked, pointing his gun at you. He seemed scared, but attempted acting strong. As he had with Sebastian.

“Calm down. I don't have any weapons and I'm just a citizen of Union.” Your held your hands up as a sign of innocence. O’Neal lowered his weapon. “I was being chased and found this place. The door was unlocked.” Sebastian was looking you up and down. He obviously seemed suspicious of you but wasn't saying anything. Now that you actually had the chance to see their faces, you could begin to form an opinion of them. Sebastian appeared to be in his early forties, his hair was messily slicked back and scruffy facial hair covered most of his face. O’Neal seemed closer to your age. He had a shaved head and the beginnings a beard, along with a pair of thin framed glasses. He certainly looked the part of technician.

“What's your name?” He asked.

“Y/N L/N.” You replied. Upon realizing Sebastian was still looking at you like you two heads, you snapped at him. “Need something, oldy?” You blamed the possible pregnancy hormones. He obviously seemed irritated but didn't get angry with you.

“You look pretty well dressed and clean for 'just a citizen of Union.’” He had a point. Your dress still looked brand new. And the only dirty thing on you was your bleeding feet.

“So I had some time to find clean clothes and wash up. You would too if you had the chance.”

“No shoes? Looks like you've been walking on glass.”

“Heels aren't the best for running and nothing else would've gone with the outfit.” You retorted. It was obvious he had more things to say, but didn't want to argue.

“I’ll make some fresh coffee.” O’Neal said, breaking the silence between the three of you.

“I’m not sure one of us can drink it.” Sebastian suggested while looking at you. How could he tell? Were you really showing that much? _Could Stefano tell when he saw you?_ Well, at least this confirmed your suspicions.

“You shouldn't go making assumptions about strangers.” You glared at him. “Especially assumptions that have to do with weight.” It seemed to take O’Neal a minute to take in what you two were saying. Even after figuring it out, he decided it would be best to stay out of it and continued brewing the coffee.

“I’m a retired detective.” Stated Sebastian. I'm pretty confident that I’m correct.” You didn't respond. “Were you expecting before or after you were put in here?”

“Mobius wouldn't send a pregnant woman into STEM.” O’Neal butted in. “Too many risks.” You felt slightly outnumbered in this conversation. But at least now you had a better idea of who Mobius was. They were the ones running this freak show.

“So is the father one of those things now?” Sebastian asked. His tone shifted less from interrogation and more towards apologetic.

“Yes.” You lied. “He is.”

“I’m sorry.” Replied Sebastian. It almost seemed as if he was sincere. Either that or he was very good at acting. You couldn't decide. He quickly changed the subject. “You know that your head's bleeding, right?” You felt the spot where you hit it on the table. Wet.

“So it is.”

“There's a first aid kit on the shelf over there.” O’Neal told you as he poured the fresh coffee for he and Sebastian. Sebastian grabbed the kit and started tending to your head. You would have done it yourself had you been able to see it. The rubbing alcohol stung, but nothing you hadn't dealt with before. When Sebastian was done he took a cup of coffee from O’Neal and they began to talk more about Mobius and the town. You decided to take this time to clean and bandage your poor feet, and only half listened to their conversation. Something about “The Core,” whatever that was, a girl named Lily, and something called a “stable field emitter.” They continued to talk about their communicators, supplies, weapons, etc. You didn't have too much interest in it. But apparently, O'Neal was planning on staying in the safe house. Sebastian was planning on going out to find “The Core” or whatever. Deciding that O'Neal probably couldn't keep you safe if Stefano decided to check buildings, you said something brave.

“Sebastian, I'm going with you.” They both looked at you as if you were crazy.

“Are you out of your mind? No way. You're staying here.” Sebastian scolded you.

“I'm not going to be a sitting duck while you find a way out of this thing. I'm going with you.” You had raised your voice by this point, walking closer to Sebastian to prove your point. “Also, I want to find St-… my baby's father. I want to put him out of his misery myself.” This wasn't quite true. Actually you were trying to do the exact opposite. Sebastian opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. Instead he lifted his hand to rub his face. He was thinking.

“Even if you were to go with me. And I'm not saying you are. Do you have any kind weapons training?” He asked.

“My parents were firm believers in the second amendment. I've got a bit.” This was another lie. But you figured you could learn quickly. Sebastian thought for another moment.

“Okay. But I can't take you out there in a dress.”

“There may be some old uniforms around the safe house. I can't promise any will fit though.” O’Neal butted in. You both had almost forgotten he was even there.

“See? Problem solved.” You smirked. Sebastian didn't look happy with this at all.

“I'm not guaranteeing your safety here.” He told you. “I'm on a mission and if you slow me down, I can't promise I won't leave you behind.” You felt like he was lying about that, but you nodded in agreement.

“I guess I’ll try to find one of those uniforms then.” You said.

 

~*~*~*~

 

It took a good half hour to finally find a uniform that fit. In that time O’Neal worked on crafting some parts for Sebastian to use. And Sebastian went out to see if he could find any bigger weapons. He had decided his handgun wasn't going to be enough to fight the Lost. Which was completely understandable.

As you changed you looked in the mirror next to you. Now that you were actually accepting that you were pregnant, the small bump was kinda obvious. This worried you. “Did Stefano already know? Did he know before I even did?” Although you still didn't know what that meant for you. How would he actually feel about this? You finished getting changed and rubbed your belly absentmindedly as you asked yourself these questions. You could feel butterflies in your stomach. It was then you realized that maybe it hadn't been butterflies at all, but your little one moving about. This brought a small smile to your face. But still creeped you out a little nonetheless. How long had this small human parasite gone unnoticed inside of you? You were trying to figure out when your last period was when there was a knock on the door of the bathroom.

“You done yet? I can't wait for you forever.” It was Sebastian. You opened the door and walked out.

“Sorry.” You said. Sebastian handed you a small gun. You took it and put it in the holster on your hip. “Thanks.”

“We better get going. I picked up the signal of the core across town.” Sebastian did a quick wave to O’Neal as the two of you began to walk out of the safe house.

“Hey, Y/N, you sure you don't want to stay? I could use some company.” He asked.

“No thanks. Thanks for your help though.” You waved as you and Sebastian walked out the door, closing it behind you.

* * *

 

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	3. Lily

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Sebastian learn a little more about each other as you explore Union

You and Sebastian had walked at least half way across town by this point. Hiding in bushes, shooting anything that saw you. You weren't used to firing a gun, but quickly got the hang of it. The two of you had ducked into a small house to take a breather and check the map.

“So what's this “Core” anyway?” You asked.

“You're in STEM and don't know what it is?” Sebastian questioned.

“Listen, I was told I was joining some kind of religious group. The next thing I knew I was in the beautiful town of Union. Everything was perfect until people started turning into the Lost.”

“Well, the Core is what this place runs on. She went missing. That's when all of this stuff started happening.”

“She?” You assumed by his reaction that Sebastian hadn't meant to let that slip.

“The Core is a little girl. Lily.” You could hear the pain in his voice. Obviously this girl was important to him. Whether he would tell you or not. Suddenly it hit you. Why Castellanos sounded familiar. And who Lily was. You remembered it clearly.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Stefano didn't often let you go wherever with him. You figured he was showing you off. That was probably why he had you put on a nice dress and had you do your hair. Not that he would have you wearing anything less than designer fashions anyway.

The two of you walked down a long hallway of his domain. His arm wrapped around your shoulder. He was taking long strides, you felt like you were running to keep up with him. Eventually you stopped in front of a door. He opened it. To your surprise a man was standing in the room. Calmly waiting by a fireplace. He turned towards you both and you were shocked to see the left side of his face was horribly scarred. You tried not to react to it.

“Nice to see you again, Stefano.” He spoke in a low, but strong tone. The man was tall, and dark. He had an air of friendliness about him. But something about him made you very uncomfortable, all the same. He wore what appeared to be the robe a priest would wear. But instead of crosses on it, there were weird symbols. They reminded you of eyes. Why did everyone have an obsession with eyes here?

“You as well, my friend.” Stefano replied. He moved to sit on the sofa and gestured for the other man to sit in the large chair across from it. You sat down beside Stefano as he kept his arm tight around your shoulders.

“As you know, I have a task for you.” The man started. This task must have been of utmost importance. He seemed very serious.

“Yes, well, go on, I haven't got all day, Father.” Stefano replied. Ah, so the man _was_ a priest. Or preacher. Whichever. The man gave Stefano a cold stare. It sent shivers down your spine and you could feel Stefano tighten his grip on your shoulder. Was he.. Afraid?

“There is a girl here. I need you to retrieve her.” The preacher handed Stefano a paper with a picture of young girl on it. She couldn't have been much older than ten. “Her name is Lily Castellanos.”

“What is so important about one child?” Stefano asked as he looked over the file. You were wondering the same thing.

“That is none of your concern.” The man replied, standing up. “That file has all you need to know. When you have her, contact me and I shall tell you where to bring her.” He was almost out the door, when he turned back to you both. “Should anything happen to her, I would begin writing your will.” The man walked out, slamming the door behind him.

“ _Dammit!_ ” Stefano stood and began pacing in front of the couch looking over the file some more. “The file has all you need to know,” he mocked. “All this damn thing has is her name and location!” He tossed the paper into the fire, turning to you. You jumped a little. “Does he think I am some _errand boy?_ ” He yelled at you. You were smart enough not to respond, at least. He turned away and began swearing to himself in Italian. You waited patiently for his tantrum to end. You knew what these always led to. “So that's why he brought me here.” You thought. “Stress relief.” It was as if he could hear your thoughts and needed to prove you right. He grabbed you tightly by the wrist and pulled you into a kiss. His kissing was just aggressive as everything else he did. It was also just as masterful. If it hadn't been for the pain, maybe you would have considered it pleasant. You thought as he slowly pushed you back onto the sofa.

 

~*~*~*~

 

You shook your head, as if to clear your thoughts. You could feel your face was flushed and subconsciously ran your hand through your hair. Sebastian was too busy looking over his map to even notice your embarrassment. You waited a minute for the blood to drain from your face, then asked the question you had been wondering since you remembered her name.

“So is Lily your daughter, or what?” Sebastian's eyes quickly widened and he turned to look at you. He tried to hide a stronger reaction, but you could tell he was distressed.

“How would you know that?” He asked. He seemed angry, but you were starting to think that was his natural state.

“St- My husband,” you lied. “He was of some importance here in Union. He knew everyone's name. The only Lily I heard of living here was Lily Castellanos. It's not the most common name in the world. So you have to be related.” Sebastian looked to the side and took a pained breath.

“Yeah, okay. You got me.” He stood up from where the two of you were sitting on the floor. “So now you understand why I can't let anything slow me down. I have to find her.” You nodded and reached out your hand for Sebastian to help you stand. He did. “Since we're digging into each other's lives. What's your husband's name? You keep almost saying it. Stan? Stuart?”

“Stephen.” You lied. “His name was Stephen L/N.” You figured a few more white lies wouldn't hurt. And also, you felt if you said his real name, he'd appear. And that was certainly the last thing you wanted.

“So I'm assuming he turned recently?” Sebastian asked.

“What? Why?” He laughed a little. You could've sworn that was the first time you heard him laugh. Or even smile for that matter.

“The hickey on your neck still looks pretty fresh.” He started to walk away. You could feel all of the blood coming back into your face as both of your hands shot up to cover your neck. _Dammit Stefano!_ You swore if you somehow saw him again, and miraculously had the strength, you would ring his neck. “Come on. We're close to the signal.” Sebastian called for you.

 

~*~*~*~

 

The two of you came upon a small diner. You remembered coming here with some of the friends you'd made in Union. Sebastian ran in, not wasting anytime. He quickly checked for the signal. According to his communicator, you were right on top of it.

“Lily?” He called. “It's okay, it's me. It's Dad.” He ran around, checking under tables, behind counters. It was a sad sight. You slowly followed, your handgun at the ready in case of emergency. He got to a door labelled “Office,” apparently it was locked. He tried it a few times to no avail, then desperately looked around for another way in. Sebastian pushed a small shelf out of the way and crawled into a hole in the wall. It must've been a vent, you assumed. Knowing you couldn't follow, you waited for him to unlock the door. “This is Lily’s doll. She's been here.” You heard him say. He was quiet for a few minutes after that. You knocked on the door.

“Sebastian, you okay? Let me in!”

“Oh my god… she’s in trouble.” He said, he quickly unlocked the door and almost knocked you over as he walked out. Realizing he had, he apologetically grabbed your shoulder, steadying you again. “We’ve got to check around back and see where that window comes out. We’ll follow the trail from there.” You nodded. Noting the small crocheted doll in his hand. It looked just like the picture you had seen of her.

“How do you know she's in trouble?” You asked.

“I saw her. She was running away.” He told you as you both walked out of the diner.

“From what?” You felt you already knew his response.

“Some freak with a camera. I met him earlier.” Damn. You hated being right.

“Freak with a camera?” You feigned ignorance.

“Guy seems to have an obsession with death. Or blood. Can't decide. It doesn't matter, I can't let him get to her.” He walked around the back of the building and you followed.

“Maybe he won't hurt her?” Were you actually defending him right now? You couldn't believe yourself.

“Doubt that. And I'm not gonna wait to find out.” Sebastian looked around the area for any clues of Lily's whereabouts. You felt dizzy. Stefano wouldn't hurt a child, would he? Of course you knew that the preacher would kill him if he hurt Lily. But would he hurt _your child?_  You could feel your breathing picking up. The light-headedness taking over.

“Sebastian…” You felt yourself falling to the ground as you saw Sebastian reaching out for you. Soon everything was black.

* * *

 

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	4. Sitting Ducks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You wake up and reconnect with Sebastian and O'Neal

You were running. You couldn't remember what or who from. Just running. Down a long hallway leading what appeared to be nowhere. You heard the saw blade and laughter behind you. Guardian. You picked up the pace. But you knew you couldn't keep going like this forever. You turned to look behind you, you could see the nightmare of a woman. Cackling as she always did. You were stopped as you ran into something. No, someone. Gloved hands held tightly onto your shoulders. You looked up. An ice blue eye was staring into your soul, and a faint blue glow came from where the other eye should have been.

“I knew I’d find you.”

 

You sat up quickly. Sweat dripping down your forehead. Where were you? What happened? Looking around you realized you must have been in another safehouse. The same coffeemaker, computer, and work bench were in the room, but arranged differently. And you were alone. Great. You laid your hand on your small bump, as if to check that it was okay. Granted you probably would have known immediately if it wasn't. Looking around some more you found a scribbled note. It was kinda hard to read but you could manage.

 

“Y/N,

Told you I’d leave you if you slowed me down. Sorry, but I have to find Lily. You’ll have to find Stephen on your own. Try not to get killed, it isn't just your own life that you're risking. If you really want to try and catch up with me, I'm headed back towards O’Neal's safehouse. Lily's signal is near there.  

-Sebastian”

 

Well, at least you knew which direction to head in. You stood up and brushed off your Mobius uniform. The butterflies in your stomach returning. Now that you actually knew what they were it kinda creeped you out. But you tried not to think about it. You left the safe house, taking in your surroundings. You were close to where you had passed out. Sebastian must have carried you. You smiled at the thought. He was kinder than he let on. But you could certainly tell he'd been through a lot. It made sense that he didn't really trust anyone. As you headed in the direction of O’Neal's safehouse you stayed mainly in the bushes. Without Sebastian as backup you really didn't want to be noticed. As you got closer and closer, you could hear something. Was that... music? No, your mind was playing tricks on you again. But it certainly seemed like it was getting louder.

Then you saw it. Aperture. The literal eye in the sky. It was mainly looking at a factory down the road, but you knew you couldn't let it see you. “Shit. Shit. Shit.” You ducked behind a tree, knowing the bushes wouldn't have been enough cover. This was exactly what you didn't want to happen. You knew if Aperture was nearby, Stefano had to be as well. The two were never far apart. That must've been the music you had heard. Tchaikovsky's “Serenade for Strings.” It was Stefano's favorite. It was a beautiful piece, but whenever you heard it now, you could only think of that man. Sometimes he’d make you dance with him. Always to this same song.

You had been too lost in your thoughts to notice that Aperture had left. Stefano was gone. Remembering the task at hand, you continued to O’Neal's safehouse.

 

~*~*~*~

 

“That doesn't make any sense.” You heard Sebastian say.

“Fortunately for you it doesn't have to make sense. It just has to work.” O’Neal replied. Not wanting to interrupt their conversation, you waited outside the door. “But it's a maze down there. You take the wrong path, you could end up on the other side of town.”

“Where's this “Marrow” that gets me to City Hall?” Marrow? What the hell was Sebastian talking about? “And who comes up with these ridiculous names?”

“I’ll mark the location of the port. It's in the North Safehouse.” Of course, exactly where you had just come from. “Looks like a regular computer, but it's not. I'll give you the password you need to activate it. Once you're inside, follow the marker straight to exit B2. It should take you straight to City Hall.”

“You could have told me this on my communicator, you know.” Sebastian had a point, if O’Neal had done that maybe you wouldn't have needed to trek all the way across town.

“Maybe so. But I couldn't have given you this.” Granted you couldn't see what “this” was. “The passageways are still intact. But the collapse of Union has caused infrastructure issues. My communicator says the gas leak is blocking the path to exit B2. You’d never make it through alive without this.” He must've been handing Sebastian a gas mask or something, you guessed.

“Deadly gas leaks, huh? Thanks for saving the worst for last, O’Neal.”

“Based on what we’ve seen so far, I doubt it's the worst you'll encounter.”

“You're not helping.” You chuckled at that.

“Anything else you need to know before you go?” O’Neal asked.

“No, but something you need to know. I left Y/N in the North Safehouse. I told her I was headed here. If she shows up, don't tell her where I went. It was bad enough she went out there with me. We aren't exposing her to a gas leak. Even if you do have another mask.” Sebastian told him, stern as ever. You took this as your cue to walk in. “Shit…” Sebastian pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Do you have another mask, O’Neal?” You asked. He shrugged.

“Sorry, but I don't.” You rolled your eyes. “I'm not just saying that. We didn't expect that we would really need them. You're just lucky we had extra uniforms lying around.” He reminded you.

“Good. Y/N, you're staying with O’Neal. After what happened earlier, you aren't leaving this safehouse until I have the core.” You opened your mouth to protest, you really didn't think he could keep you safe. “I'm not taking excuses. You've got more to think about than yourself. Stay. Here.” Sebastian sounded like he was your dad. You supposed Lily was lucky to have someone who cared so much.

“Fine.” You leaned against the wall. “Good luck, Sebastian.” You weren't sure if he heard you, as he was already out the door.

“So what happened earlier?” O’Neal asked.

“I passed out.”

“You what? Listen, you should be amazed you're even alive right now.” He had a point. Why was it that everyone else was always right?

“I know. I get it. Luckily Sebastian was there, and I'm okay.”

“You know, anyone else would tell you the same thing. You can't really just run around anymore. It's n-”

“It's not just me, yeah, I know.” O’Neal put his hands up in a defensive position.

“Hey, just stating the facts. Didn't you think about this before you even thought of having kids?” You thought for a minute.

“This wasn't exactly planned. Honestly, I didn't even know about it until like, a day ago. So I'm not really appreciating the lecture, Liam.” You sighed. Maybe you should've sat down. You were feeling light headed again.

“How could you not know? I thought that would be something that was pretty obvious. You know, like the throwing up and stuff.”

“I didn't get any of that. And it's not exactly like I had access to a pregnancy test in this nightmare.”

“Okay, fair enough. How far along are you anyway?” Now you really had to think. When _was_ your last period? You counted on your fingers trying to figure it out. But you still couldn't.

“Time isn't quite the same in here. I have no clue.” You sighed, placing a hand on your abdomen.

“Hm. If I really looked hard enough I'm sure we have some info on that kind of stuff somewhere in here, but I've got better things to do.” He turned back to his workbench. You narrowed your eyes.

“Thanks.” You said sarcastically as you began to look for a book or something that might help you. You were right, O'Neal really wasn't any help in your predicament.

* * *

 

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	5. The Marrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian explores the Marrow

Sebastian didn't like the Marrow. No, it reminded him too much of Beacon. But a more modern sort of Beacon. Parts of this place reminded him of the Mobius facility his physical self was sleeping in at the time. Other parts were more reminiscent of sewers and other such things you would imagine being under a town. Sebastian sighed as he opened the next door.

“So this is the dreaded gas leak, huh?” He looked at the door with the red flashing light in front of him. “Thanks, O'Neal,” he began as he put his gas mask on. “I'd never make it through without this thing.” He hurriedly looked over the map to get a refresher. “It's like a maze in here…” Sebastian went to open the next door, taking note of The “Danger Flammable” sign. “Damn. That means I won't be able to rely on my firearms.” Luckily, he had become quite stealthy. He figured he'd probably be able to sneak up behind anything that may be in the path ahead. Although, his peripherals were blocked by the gas mask.

First room, only one Lost. An easy kill. Okay, maybe this wouldn't be so bad. After going down some stairs though, all he could hear were moans. “Shit. Hope it's not one of those tall ones.” He thought. Fortunately, he came upon a door. Unfortunately, said door was electronically locked. So he had to go find the panel to unlock it. Great.

And of course, turning the corner he found exactly what he didn't want to. One of those moaning, tall, gas-emitting, abominations. Sebastian hated when he was right. Hiding behind boxes and using bottles to distract it, he was able to get through. But not having all of his vision certainly didn't help. When he found the control panel it was pretty easy to figure out. “Hopefully that did something.” Sebastian told himself. Unfortunately he had to get past that thing, again. Wonderful. Seeing as this wasn't his first rodeo, he was able to get through again, undetected. And, the locked door was now unlocked. Cool. After shutting the door and sealing it, he took off his mask.

“Thank God. That mask smelled terrible.” Sebastian half joked to himself. At least his sense of humor was intact. He thought as he climbed the ladder in front of him. At the top of the ladder he found a computer. Odd place for one seeing as how he was surrounded by large pipes and literally nothing else. But this was Mobius, nothing they did made sense. Upon noticing that some files were left open, he took the time to skim over them. Anything to get more knowledge on Mobius. The file essentially said how each citizen of Union added storage to their STEM database. Once they had enough storage they could move forward with “Phase 2.” A wireless STEM. One where you wouldn't even need to be hooked up to a STEM pod. But Mobius operatives would be safe from this signal. Great.

“So they really do just want everyone to be stuck in this shithole, don't they? To be their little play things. I won't let them.” After logging this file on his communicator, Sebastian continued up the stairs in the next room and through the door ahead. Upon entering a half collapsed room, he picked up another signal. “God, I hope it's not Lily.” He wouldn't want her to be down in this mess. It was bad enough she was in this machine at all. _Why didn't he save her?_ He shook his head to clear his thoughts and locked on to the signal. Another Mobius operative. Left behind by his comrades to die. Sebastian shouldn't have expected anything else. It seemed like that's what the majority of these signals were.

Since it appeared his only way through had caved in, he took to crawling through a vent. “I'm getting too old for this bullshit.” He thought as his back popped. When he crawled out of the vent, all that lay ahead of him was a door labelled “Exit B2.”

“Finally,” he said. “There it is, my way back to Union.” The room through the door didn't have much. Just a few desks, and only one with a computer. He typed in the familiar password. It was Lily's birthday, and the day of the fire. Two days he would never forget. Although, if he ever miraculously did forget, all he'd have to do was look at her tombstone.

He kicked over the chair in the safe room he appeared in. The ever familiar “Clair de Lune” playing nearby. He could get to his room from here. Not that he had needed to for a little while. But maybe he would contact Kidman. “But why? To give her another piece of my mind?” He thought as he climbed another ladder. Outside the safehouse was just as decrepit as the rest of Union. Although it made him a bit dizzy to see where he had just been, where he left O'Neal and Y/N, in the sky above him.

“This must be city hall. Gotta stop this guy and save Lily.” He reminded himself aloud.

Suddenly, the world around him had picked up a blue tint, and and orchestra of string instruments filled his ears. And what was in front of him on the path, you ask? That damn photographer. “It's him.” He muttered. He was just about to run forward as the ground shook and a column of tentacles? Veins? (He didn't know, or care.) Shot down on either side of the path. “Shit.. what the _fuck_ is that?” In the sky directly in front of him was what appeared to be a huge camera lens. Great. As if things couldn't get any weirder. “Not sure I'm ready for this. But I can't turn back now.” Sebastian reminded himself as he began down the path towards City Hall. Lightning flashed around him, and the string chorus grew eerily louder as he walked closer. The gateway was littered with corpses. Of course. Did he really think it would be anything else in this nightmare? A dead Mobius operative was placed perfectly in the center under the barbed wire fence. (Barbed wire, he hadn't seen that in a while.) On the perfectly placed corpse, using a knife to hold it there(wow, very original), was a photo of himself, taken at what appeared to be the warehouse. Written on it was “WAITING FOR YOU…”

“Yeah, just you wait asshole.” Sebastian muttered as he crumpled up the photograph.

* * *

 

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	6. The Artist's Domain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian exploring City Hall with a certain someone getting on his nerves.

A series of flashes caused Sebastian to cover his eyes, and next thing he knew, the barbed wire in front of him was gone. He took a few steps forward observing the area. Which was, you guessed it, littered with more corpses. Suddenly, he heard what sounded like a camera shutter and looked into the sky. The camera lens had opened to reveal a large blue eye, which slid forward and backward, as if focusing. Coming from the eye was a beam of blue light, just like the one he had seen at the warehouse. Sebastian looked in front of him to see all of the corpses in the area being drawn into one large creature. He turned and tried to run, but the chain link gate slammed shut in front of him.

“Shit.” He hit the fence and slowly turned to see the abomination forming behind him. The large woman like creature with the saw. Lovely. It smiled at him and charged forward. He ran to the side as quickly as he could and pulled out his shotgun. Quickly reloading and firing. Although he was sure it wouldn't have much affect.

“Maybe it's like the lady at Beacon?” He asked himself as he ran. As he passed a barrel of oil, he kicked it over. He waited for the creature to step into the spill and BOOM. Not quite fire, but an explosion certainly worked. The creature simply cackled as half of its body was torn away by the blast. “One more like that and it should be down.” Sebastian thought aloud, looking for another oil barrel to kick over. As soon as he found one, he repeated his actions and BOOM. Heads, arms and various other parts rained down around him. “Ulgh. If only it would stay down.” He muttered as he walked through the doors of City Hall.

The first thing he saw was a bloodied Mobius operative. One of the search team, and still alive at that. He ran over to him

“Who’s there?” The operative asked weakly.

“It's okay. Harrison, right? I'm not one of ‘them.’” Sebastian reassured the man.

“...W-Who are you..?” Harrison asked.

“Dont worry. O'Neal sent me.” Which was partially true.

“I, uh, ...I thought I was the only one left-” he was cut off by a coughing fit.

“I'm looking for the core. Where is she? Is she here?” The man looked up.

“S-Second floor- stable field emitter…”

“Emitter? Forget about that, I'm here to find the core!” Sebastian's only thought at this point was getting information to save Lily.

“You _must_ , turn on… the emitter.” Harrison pressed. “I-It will… stabilize the environment… Without it… Union will completely collapse. Then the core won't matter. Turn it on… It will affect His power…”

“His power..? You mean..”

“Take this…” Harrison slowly handed his communicator to Sebastian. “Use it to turn on the emitter..” He fell to the side. His body fell completely still.

“Another team member down… I wish I could have gotten more info.” Sebastian stated as he pocketed the second communicator. “Don't worry, Lily, I'm still gonna find you.”

Sebastian could hear the string instruments again coming from a nearby room. Why was it always classical music? He decided from this point on, anyone he met who liked classical music was probably a psychopath. Walking into the room he was stunned by the sight. It looked like a Mobius operative had been killed and was left in an endless loop of falling over the railing from the upper floor. The blood coming from him appearing like wings. “That's his M.O.” Sebastian whispered to himself. “He's somewhere in here.”

Upon investigating most of the hall all he found were cameras and lights. No photographer. Until he stumbled upon a room behind a curtain. “What's this about?” He asked. In front of him was a mannequin wearing a familiar blue dress and a camera in front of that. On the wall was a portrait which looked very similar. But a young woman filled the place of the mannequin. Her face was mostly scratched out, but he could tell she had H/C hair and S/C skin.

Assuming the freak wanted him to set up the mannequin like the portrait, he obliged and took the photo. It was as if the flash were magic. The backdrop had gone from just a painting to a real hallway. This hallway was lined with gruesome photos of what Sebastian assumed to be the same woman. None showing her face. At the end of the hall, a large white canvas was sloppily painted with the words “APPRECIATE THE ART.”

“'Appreciate the art’? Fine. As long as it gets me closer to you. I'll play your game…” Sebastian grumbled, walking back down the hallway to look at the photos individually. He didn't have time for this. He had to get to Lily. When he returned to where the white canvas had been, it had been replaced with a portrait of a girl running away. “That's Lily.. this guys playing with me.” He pulled out his handgun, aiming it at the floor so he would be ready. A thumping noise could be heard at the other end of the hall. As Sebastian drew closer, it became more violent, knocking the portrait on the wall onto the floor. The door that was thumping creaked open, he aimed his gun. The white door was covered in blood, but no one was behind it. He cautiously continued down the new hallway. A recording began to play nearby.

“This one is perfect.” It said. The voice was deep and dripped with a heavy accent. “Naturally so. It is my work _after all_ .” Sebastian assumed this had to be the photographer. “Death preserved on silver nitrate… like a fly in amber. _Beautiful_.” The last word was drawn out. The speaker enjoying every syllable as it slid off of his tongue. Sebastian narrowed his eyes. Preoccupied with looking for the recording device he didn't even notice when a new door appeared and opened. Walking into the new room, he noted it had more mannequins, wearing the same blue and black dress.

“God, why is it always mannequins..?” Sebastian asked as he walked into the next room. It must've been the mayor's office. All it had were a couple desks cluttered with papers. On one of these desks lay a photo of the man from before. The Mobius operative falling over the railing. “Another one.. but what is he after?” As soon as Sebastian finished his thought, the lights went out around him. “Damn.” He turned on his flashlight and continued back the way he had come. When he came to a fork in the halls he could hear clicking from the right side. Was that… a camera? He turned, looking down the hall. At the end were bright lights and a silhouette of a man taking pictures.

“He _is_ playing with me.” Sebastian muttered. He ran forward, only to have the double doors slammed in his face while laughter filled his ears. If he hadn't been angry before, he was angry at this point. Sebastian turned around to see the hallway had completely changed. Vases were knocked over, curtains ripped, and blood splattered on the walls. As Sebastian walked down the hall it turned into a long staircase, leading to the same white double doors Sebastian had had slammed in his face. He approached as calmly as he could and opened the doors. All that remained in the room was a chair and that same dress. Where had he seen that dress before? The lights shut off again and he was momentarily blinded by a few flashes. Was that… _a woman moaning_ that he heard?

When he opened his eyes the room had changed and he was surrounded by crystallized Lost. The bubbles on their skin still pulsating. “What are these things?” He whispered. As he was walking out, he found a note scrawled messily on a fancy card.

_“Too beautiful to leave out in the street. I had to display them. I wish that I could take credit… but it's nice to know that there are other artists in here with me.”_

Sebastian had no idea what the hell that meant, but he continued on. The next hallway’s walls and even ceiling were all covered with the same portrait of a woman. He couldn't quite make out her face, but she seemed familiar. Down the next hallway was a pair of double doors that were wide open. In the center of the room was some sort of machine. The rest of the room appeared to have been used as a dark room and or art gallery. “This has to be the emitter.” Sebastian walked forward and started up the emitter. Hearing the door creak open he turned, drawing his gun. But at the sound of a camera flash, he was frozen.

* * *

 

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	7. His Muse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian finally meets Stefano face to face and learns that someone may not be all that they said they were.

**A/N:** This chapter has been updated to include my favorite easter egg of the game, which was not originally written in.

“You have been searching for me for so long. So I have come.” The man walked slow circles around Sebastian, his camera in his hands. “But wait, it's not me you seek, is it?” He stopped and turned toward him. “No. It's the _girl_ . I should be offended. But how can I be?” He began walking again. “You aren't the only one who wants her power. There is another, one far more deserving. One who can offer you rewards you could _never_ imagine.” He stopped in front of him and pulled out his knife. “So, sorry,” he teased. “You've been _outbid._ Ha-” he moved the knife forward as if he were about to stab Sebastian’s eye. But instead he held it there for a moment, only an inch away. He then began to slowly slice down Sebastian's cheek. “Fear _radiates_ from you… it is beautiful.” He pulled the knife away. “But not yet finished. I am Stefano. And you have something of mine.” Sebastian had no clue what he was talking about, all he knew was this maniac had his daughter. “I suppose if you _live_ , we may be able to make a trade. But for now, you are _my art_.” He turned and began to walk away. Sebastian broke free of whatever was holding him and quickly aimed his gun.

“Son of a bitch!” He shouted at the now empty space. He could hear laughing and… was that the woman moaning again? He looked up, his gun following his gaze. Above him he could see a very old camera. “Obscura” printed below the lense. As it came closer, the light revealed two hands holding onto the the camera and a woman's body with three legs hanging above it. Wait… it was all attached. And moving of its own accord.

“Meet my beautiful Obscura!” Stefano shouted unseen. The monstrous tripod fell onto the ground in front of Sebastian.

“Shit.” Sebastian ran and hid behind the nearest wall. He heard a “huaaa” sort of noise from the creature, followed by the flash of a camera. Wait, had the emitter stopped working? He glanced around the corner. Of course it had. That _thing_ had made it stop. Great. “I need to distract it.” Sebastian told himself as he ran out in front of it. He figured running, ducking behind walls, and shooting at it if necessary(can’t waste bullets) would probably work. It chased after him, moaning and groaning all the same.

“Thirty seconds” the emitter stated. Just a little more. “Twenty seconds” Come on… “Ten seconds” Almost there…

The stable field emitter had rebooted. The creature writhed in pain and simply faded from existence. Sebastian took a few minutes to catch his breath.

“Great. Saved my own ass, but what am I supposed to do now. He’s gone. He didn’t leave Lily here. Where did he take her?” Sebastian asked himself. He started to think over the very one-sided conversation he had had with Stefano only minutes ago. “I have something of his? What the hell is he talking about?” Then it hit him. The dress. The portraits. The woman.

“ _Stephen_.” He mocked. “Stephen my ass.” She had meant Stefano. He hadn't turned into a monster, no, he was the one turning others into monsters. She knew who Lily was, and she knew this asshole was looking for her the entire time. For them both. Lily and Y/N. How could Sebastian have been so stupid?

 

~*~*~*~

 

You were still looking over the shelves what seemed like hours later. O’Neal was no help. No surprise there.

“What are you even doing that's so important anyway?” You asked him, annoyed.

“I'm making weapon parts, checking the levels of collapse in Union. _And_ waiting for Sebastian to contact me.” He told you. “You know, if he hasn't died.” Oh Liam, ever optimistic. You rolled your eyes.

“He’s not dead. He's got great combat skills and a good sense of what he's doing. I mean, he's an ex-cop, right?”

“Yeah, I guess. Guy doesn't really talk about his past. I'm sure you know more than I do.”

“Not much.” You shrugged. O'Neal was Mobius. You weren't sure if that meant you could trust him or not. So, you kept your mouth shut.

“Well, he better hurry up and get back.” O'Neal turned towards you as he talked. “If that thing,” he pointed at your belly for emphasis, “Decides to come out, I'm just a tech. I can't really help you there.” You felt a little insulted.

“And Sebastian would be so much help?”

“Well, sometimes cops work as paramedics, right? If he really is an ex-cop, I'm sure he knows the basics.”

“I guess.” You nodded. O’Neal’s communicator began to ring. He picked it up.

“O’Neal, it’s me.” You could hear Sebastian’s voice on the other side. He sounded stressed, but you were starting to think that was his natural tone.

“I see the Stable Field Emitter is back online.” O’Neal told him. “Please tell me you found the Core and you’re on your way back here.”

“Sorry, that lunatic still has her.” Sebastian replied. You wrapped your arms around yourself, looking down. “But I think I might have an idea of where he went.”

“Yeah, I see it too. I’m picking up the signal again, but now it’s coming from the theater in the other part of town.”

“Right. Through the Marrow again, I guess. I may need a little guidance here.”

“I’m on it.” O'Neal began to look through his computer. “Looks like turning the emitter back on stabilized some passages there.” He explained. “Exit D5 looks to be the one closest to the theater. I’m not totally sure what you’ll encounter down there so watch your back.”

“At this point, nothing would surprise me.” Sebastian told him. You weren't so sure about that. “But I need to come and get some supplies. So first I’m gonna head back there.”

“Okay, cool. We’ll be here.” O’Neal hung up the communicator.

 

~*~*~*~

 

    You walked down the long hall. Portraits lining the walls. You couldn't make out what they were of though. Then you heard it, a baby crying. You were already headed in the direction of the noise. When you reached the door, you opened it. You weren't sure what you were expecting to see, but there he was. Consoling the child. Rocking it gently in his arms as he whispered sweet nothings in Italian. Stefano. Your captor. Your lover. Your child’s father. When he heard you, he looked up and smiled. It was sincere. Not a smile of amusement or alterior motive. But a true, almost _loving_ smile.

 

You woke up at the noise of the door being opened. It was Sebastian. You weren't sure how long you had been asleep, but it couldn't have been too long. You stretched, the chair you had fallen asleep in wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world.

“Welcome back.” You said, glancing over at Sebastian. He gave you a stern look. Not that that was particularly unusual, but it sent chills down your spine all the same.

“So what supplies did you nee-” O'Neal had started to ask as Sebastian pulled out his gun, took off the safety and aimed it at you. It was like you could feel your heart stop. O'Neal took a step back. “Sebastian what are you-”

“She's with him. She knew all along that he was going to take her. She knew.” He didn't take his eyes off of you for even a second. He began to raise his voice. “The nice dress, the knowledge about Lily… I don't know how I didn't notice.”

“Dude, what are talking about?” O'Neal asked. At this point you weren't even trying to defend yourself. He was right.

“The freak with the camera. That maniac that has my daughter. Stefano. That's who the father is.” Sebastian's expression was unchanging, but you could see the betrayal in his eyes. “You actually slept with that psycho?” He asked you. You weren't sure what to say. Would you defend Stefano? Would you make up some excuses? I mean, sure, at first you had no intention of ever doing anything with him. You just wanted to live. But you couldn't deny that you cared for him at this point. “Answer me!” Sebastian shouted. You stood up.

“Okay. Yes, I slept with him. Yes, he's the father. Yes, I knew about Lily and him wanting her. But I couldn't do anything to stop it. I was his play thing, I didn't have a say.” You told him. “And it wasn't his idea to get her anyway, some other guy said he had to.”

“Like that makes it any better. You still knew! You _knew_ he was after her!” Sebastian shouted. O’Neal looked nervously between the two of you. His safe house didn't seem so safe anymore.

“And I’m telling you there is nothing I could have done!” You pressed. “Please, understand, Sebastian. I only agreed to stay with him because he could keep me safe!” Sebastian shook his head. He was tired of listening to you. You couldn't blame him.

“You're going to help me get her back.” He told you.

“Wha- How?”

“He said he'd make a trade. If I brought back 'what was his.’”

“No, you can't be serious. Sebastian, plea-”

“How are you going to get her through the Marrow? We don't have another mask.” O'Neal reminded him.

“So I’ll hold my breath. Or find another route. I'm getting Lily back.” Sebastian moved to grab your arm. You pulled it away but moved ahead of him to walk out the door. You knew you couldn't fight him on this. You'd do the same thing if you were Lily's parent. “Give me your gun.” Seriously? You sighed and handed it over. Sebastian put both his and your guns away, although you knew he wouldn't hesitate to pull one back out if he needed to. He turned to O' Neal. "Look, I'm in the middle of some serious shit right now, O'Neal." Sebastian shook his head. "I could use some help out there."

"No way." O'Neal shook his head.

"Are you kidding?" Sebastian asked, irritated.

"I told you I wasn't going to leave this place. It's fucking _evil_ out there." O'Neal reminded him, backing up. 

"That may be... but there's _evil within, too._ " The two men looked at you as if they expected you to say something. 

"Whatever. I'll take my chances in here." O’Neal said as Sebastian looked back at him. "See you around, Sebastian." O'Neal paused. "Good luck, Y/N." He said nothing else as you and Sebastian left. This was it. You would have to face him again. Stefano Valentini.

* * *

 

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	8. Your Boyfriend, The Psychopath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Sebastian make your way to the Marrow, meeting someone who may or may not be an ally.

You and Sebastian were part of the way through the Marrow, walking down a long set of staircases which seemed never ending. You had to stop and catch your breath every few minutes. Sebastian of course wasn't very happy with this, but there wasn't really anything he could do. When you finally reached the bottom of the stairs, you both went through the door there. The hallway was covered in… you weren't sure what to call it. White… goop? Slime? It had bubbles that pulsated throughout it and to say the least, you were disgusted.

“Woah…” Sebastian mumbled. “What the hell is this stuff?” You were wondering the same thing. Although you weren't sure if you wanted to find out.

“Who cares. Let's just go.” You told him. It wasn't that you really wanted to speed up your reunion with Stefano, you just didn't want to stay here.

“Right.”

“So what happened to your face?” You asked, gesturing to the fresh blood smeared on Sebastian's cheek.

“Your boyfriend.” You were afraid the answer would be something like that.

“Sorry. And he's not my boyfriend.” You told him.

“You seem to care about him an awful lot.”

“Well, I don't. So don't get the wrong idea. He tortured me for months. I hate him.” You felt like you were lying. But you tried to convince yourself that you weren't. Part of it was the truth, but you weren’t entirely sure you hated him. Even after all he’d put you through. Sebastian gave you a slightly apologetic look. It was obvious that he was still angry with you. Upon reaching the end of the hall you went through the next door to find a room with even more of the “goop” all over it. You thought you were going to be sick.

The room was full of various TV's and computers. You wondered what it could have been used for, when suddenly a projector turned on. In the projection you could see the silhouette of a man and a woman talking each other. Looking around, you realized all of the TV's were showing the same thing.

“Stop and listen to yourself, Myra!” It was Sebastian's voice. You turned to look at him. He stared at the projection. Heartache was evident in his eyes, but he would never let it show in his face. “A secret society abducted Lily and staged her death? Do you realize how crazy that sounds?” What was he talking about? You turned to look at the projection again.

“But it's true! Why can't you understand that?” The woman asked, she sounded close to tears. Who was she?

“I know it's hard to accept, Myra… but she's gone. Our little girl is gone.” So she was Sebastian's wife. You looked back at Sebastian, was that a tear you saw on his cheek?

“But I have proof! Look!” Myra pleaded.

“Myra, you're obsessed… You need rest. Once you get past this you'll learn to accept-”

“No! I'll never accept it.” She told him. “If you won't help me. I'll find out the truth on my own!” The projector shut off, along with the TV's. Sebastian stood staring at the wall for a minute longer. He quickly wiped his face. You stayed silent as you watched him pick up what looked to be a slide for the projector.

“Myra… you were right all along…” Sebastian mumbled. You weren't sure if you were supposed to hear that, so you stayed quiet. “But why am I seeing this now?” You both continued on to the next hallway. Sebastian opened the door and looked out, you both could hear a door at the other end of the hall slam shut.

“What the hell was that?” You whispered.

“Stay behind me.” Sebastian pulled out his gun and you both walked cautiously towards the door that had shut. Sebastian attempted to push the double doors open, facing some resistance. The doors were practically glued shut with the slime. Upon opening them, in front of you was a large goop monster of some sort. You and Sebastian ducked behind some crates and he held his hand over your mouth so you wouldn't speak. You held your eyes shut, hearing a sort of gurgling noise above your head. You didn't even want to imagine what was above you. After you felt some of the slime splash onto your arm, Sebastian took his hand off of your mouth. You opened your eyes and quickly brushed the goop off of your uniform.

“Good God, look at the size of that thing…” Sebastian whispered, peaking around the corner of your hiding spot. “Maybe we can sneak past it…” You wanted to argue, but knew you didn't have a choice and let Sebastian lead the way. You were hardly able to be stealthy, seeing as there was a small human inside of you. But you were stealthy enough not to be spotted.

You both continued into the next hall, the creature screeching and moving it's goopy arms about the room. “We gotta get the hell out of here.” Sebastian reminded you (as if you needed reminding) as you got into the next room. It was full of crates and other things of that nature.

“At least we can hide again if we need to…” You mumbled to yourself. The two of you walked towards another set of double doors. As Sebastian started to push them open you were both grabbed by whatever hellish beast was in the last room. “Sebastian!” You cried, your heart racing and your breath escaping you.

“Shit!” He yelled. He shot it a few times in what you assumed to be it's face. It dropped you both and Sebastian grabbed you by the arm. Hurriedly he helped you to your feet and you both ran through the doors, shutting them behind you. “I thought this thing was supposed to be fucking stable!” Sebastian yelled. You tried to catch your breath, heart still beating a mile a minute. Was the baby okay? You could feel it moving around, and more than just the butterflies feeling. Sebastian turned to you. “You guys okay?” He may have hated your guts at the time, but he still wasn’t a monster.

“I don’t know.  I think so…” He nodded. After a minute or so, you caught your breath and continued walking with Sebastian.

“Looks like someone's enjoying the show…” He subtly gestured to a security camera near the ceiling. You stared at it for a second then continued on. You rubbed your belly trying to calm the squirming child. Sebastian opened the next door in front of you, marked with the ever familiar red paint. A safe house. The first thing the two of you saw when walking in was the security monitor for the camera you had just passed. “Someone's been watching…” Sebastian mumbled. He opened the file sitting on the desk. It looked similar to the one you had seen the preacher giving Stefano. “Lily!” Sebastian gasped. “Someone's been gathering files on her…”

“Don't move.” You froze. It was a woman's voice coming from behind the two of you.

“You're Mobius, right? I-” Sebastian started.

“Shut up!” The woman stepped closer. “Don't say a word. You're not one of us.”

“No, I'm not. Kidman sent me.” You wondered who the hell Kidman was. “Look, I'm here to help, okay. My name is Sebastian Castellanos.”

“You're lying. Sebastian Castellanos is dead.” The woman argued. But if Sebastian was dead, who was this?

“What? No… who… who told you that?” Sebastian certainly seemed unsettled. You assumed that meant he was the real one. You could hear the woman back up.

“Turn around. Do it slow.” She told you both. You felt like you were gonna pass out, or throw up, or both. Slowly, you both turned around, hands beside your head. In front of you stood a small woman in a Mobius uniform aiming a gun between the two of you.

“You're Yukiko Hoffman.” Sebastian stated.

“How do you know my name?” She pointed the gun at him.

“I told you. They sent me in here to find my daughter Lily. The Core. I’m telling you the truth!” He pleaded. She put the gun down.

“I know.”

“...You do?” He asked. You and Sebastian put your arms down.

“Lack of microexpressions and deflection. No verbal parroting.” She put her gun away and turned the lights on. “I’ve seen enough to know you’re telling the truth.”

“Right. The team psychologist and medic.” Sebastian said this as way to explain to you and also remind himself. She nodded.

“Who is this?” She looked at you.

“Y/N, she’s helping me find Lily.” Sebastian explained. You were too tired to stand much longer. You found the nearest chair and sat down.

“Sorry for pointing my gun at you.” Hoffman apologized and turned back to Sebastian. “If they’re hiring independent contractors, I’d assume things aren’t improving. Have you found any other team members?”

“I have. But the only one I found alive was O’Neal.” He explained.

“Liam is alive?” She sounded excited. “Good. Has he made any progress on stabilization?”

“The big Emitter’s back on, but this place is still falling apart.” Sebastian shook his head. “And I think it’s all because of this psycho that kidnapped Lily.” You shivered at the mention of Stefano. “He’s running loose in Union and can manipulate this place at will.”

“That means my theory is correct.” Hoffman crossed her arms. “This is more than a core disconnect. We doctors don’t like to use the term ‘psycho’ in such pejorative terms.” You were glad to hear someone else standing up for Stefano. Even if it was indirectly. “But in this case, it’s apropos. Only a clinically diagnosed psychopath could affect STEM like this.” Nevermind. You felt sick again. “A psychopathic personality type using Lily to amplify his power… This is the worst possible situation.”

“Well, you’re a shrink. Any suggestion on how to defeat him?” Sebastian asked. You didn’t like the way they talked about Stefano, but you couldn’t imagine talking about him any differently, all the same.

“Psychopaths are antisocial, lack empathy, and exhibit sadistic tendencies.” Sure, you would agree with the sadistic part, you’d been on the sharp end of his knife once or twice. But lacking in empathy? You weren’t sure of that. “But their main commonality is their pathologic egocentricity. They don’t care about people, only themselves.” That was it. You felt horrible. She had to be lying. There was no other way. But you couldn’t stop the tears that began to slide down your cheeks. “Can you think of anything that would be important to him?” After Hoffman asked this, Sebastian turned to look at you. You wiped away your tears as fast as you could, but you kept crying. Damn pregnancy hormones.

“Yeah. Y/N, I guess, lived with him for a while. He said he’d make a trade if I gave her back.” Sebastian explained. Hoffman looked surprised, but glancing at your slightly swollen belly, it seemed to make more sense to her.

“Right. Well, if you were going to defeat him, I’d suggest not going through with the trade. Keep Y/N as a bargaining chip to ensure mutual safety for her and Lily. But destroy something else of value to him to knock him off of his guard.” She suggested.

“He seems to think he’s some kind of artist. It’s all he talks about.” Sebastian stated.

“Good, then maybe destroy some of his artwork?”

“That involves getting close to him first. He’s hiding in the theater.”

“Right, exit D5. It’s in the next room.” Hoffman told him.

“Great.” Sebastian responded. “Wait, if Mobius knew to keep psychopaths out of STEM then how did one end up in here?”

“I don't know. Every individual in STEM was subjected to a battery of psychological exams prior to placement.” You remembered taking the tests before joining the cult. A bunch of tests asking about how you would react in certain situations and things like that. They were weird. “And we've been observing them from here, in secret, to keep an eye out for mental instability.” How long had Mobius been watching over you? You'd lived in Union for a long time. Had it been that whole time?

“Yeah, well that didn't work.” Sebastian stated.

“Unfortunately, psychopathy and sociopathy are incredibly difficult to diagnose correctly. Psychopaths tend to be cunning and highly intelligent. Aware of their own diagnosis, they’re able to disguise themselves among us. The fact that this one was able to fool us… He’s obviously adroit and self-aware. Disturbingly so.” Thinking back, if you had met Stefano before everything started going crazy(which you think you might have, seeing as Union was a small town) you may have fallen for him then too.

“Great, so the tests only filtered out the weakest of psychos?” Sebastian sounding angry as ever.

“I feel terribly responsible for all of this. I helped devise those tests.” Hoffman shook her head.

“...Does Lily really think I'm dead or was that just a part of your lie-detector test?” he asked her.

“Sorry to break it to you, but she does.” Hoffman crossed her arms. “I thought it was the truth too, until just now. But over the years, I've learned to take everything Mobius tells me with a pinch of salt. It wasn't difficult to see you were telling the truth.”

“Why would they do that?” Sebastian yelled. He sighed and continued calmly. “What kind of monsters do you work for?”

“I know it's not right. But consider this: Lily is probably less traumatized by thinking you're dead than by thinking you're alive but she can't be with you.” Hoffman explained.

“Yeah. Maybe. But what happens when I finally find her?” Sebastian asked.

“Don't worry she'll believe the evidence of her eyes when she sees you.” Sebastian thought on this for a moment, then shook his head.

“I better get going.” He turned to you. “I'm going to scope out the area. You stay here.” You were going to argue but figured it was pointless. You nodded and Sebastian left. Hoffman turned towards you.

“So you were a citizen of Union, I presume?” She asked.

“Unfortunately.” You glared at her. She gulped.

“I'm sorry. I know Mobius has done a lot of horrible things.”

“You can say that again. What even is this place anyway?”

“STEM. A machine that connects minds together on a molecular level. Nothing that happens in here is really real. But you can feel it. And, if you die, you'll still die in the real world.” You were surprised to hear this. Of course you knew that some of this couldn't be real, but to hear that none of it was…

“But what about-” You put your hand on your belly. Hoffman shook her head.

“I would assume not, but I have no idea. You're the first case of a STEM pregnancy.” She told you. “I'm not sure what will happen.” You took a deep breath. It certainly felt real. You hoped it was real. But you didn't at the same time. “So is the baby his? … The Psychopath’s?”

“His name is Stefano Valentini.” You told her, saying it made you nervously glance around the room for a second. “And yes.” Hoffman crossed her arms and thought for a minute, sitting at the computer.

“Stefano Valentini…” she repeated, thinking. She started typing and pulled up a file on the screen. “Yes, I do remember him. Candidate #10045.” She turned to you. “We needed more creative, artistic types in order for STEM to seem more like the real world.” She looked back at the file. “Yes… he had egocentric tendencies, but we decided it was because he was an artist. We should have looked into it more…”

“...what else does your file say about him?” She had peaked your curiosity.

“Stefano Valentini. Date of birth: December 22nd, 1985. Born in Florence, Italy. Current residence: Krimson City, California. Occupation: Artist. No living relatives.” Hoffman continued reading through the file, but that was all that she read aloud. You thought over the information you had just been told. He was (older/younger) than you, but not by much. And you remembered that the first time you had heard his accent you wondered if he was actually from Italy. Seeing as he almost never talked about his past, you didn't know for sure until now. Although you had assumed, since the language came so naturally to him. Hoffman turned back to you. “Why did you live with him?”

“He said he'd protect me. From the Lost. All I had to do was be a model.” You explained. Hoffman thought for a moment. “Obviously it escalated from there.”

“But the citizens only started turning into Lost recently… how far along are you?”

“I'm not sure. I can't make sense of the time in here. But it felt like I lived with him for months.” She crossed her arms again, thinking.

“If someone had enough conscious influence over STEM, they may be able to manipulate the time around them. You may have been with him for weeks, but definitely not months.” You were shocked to say the least. “From my limited medical knowledge, I would say, from looking at you, that you're around 27-32 weeks.” You were even more shocked about that, if shocked was even the word you could use at this point.

“7-8 months!?” You stood up. “There is no way! I only found out about this what seemed like a couple days ago!” Hoffman looked at you, but you could tell she was still thinking and not entirely paying attention to you. You sat back down, resting your hand on your abdomen.

“Yes. If he had conscious influence over time, he may have sped it up around you.” You thought over it for a time. It would make sense. How he was able to create so much in so little time. How it seemed like you had been with him forever. How you had no bump, no symptoms at all, and then suddenly you were ready burst. It all made sense. You swore under your breath.

“Wait… I wasn't this big a couple days ago. But I've been far away from him.”

“I don't believe he's strong enough to have power over all of Union. But I have two theories. Although, I'm not sure I can fully commit to one or the other. One, you were with him long enough that the effects have continued even after separation. Or, two, he knows where you are and has been staying close enough to keep time at the same pace for you specifically.” _Fuck._

* * *

 

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	9. Lisa and Maria Crane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stefano reflects on all that's happened thus far and Sebastian decides it's time to destroy some of his "art"

Stefano sighed as he walked towards the stage. When he reached it he turned around and leaned against the edge. He pulled out some photos he had recently taken. All of Y/N. And _Sebastian._ The man made him furious. It was all his fault she was gone. It couldn’t have simply been a coincidence that on the same day that man appeared she ran away. He must have tricked her into running so that he would have a bargaining chip for the Core. _Damn._ Naturally, Stefano wasn’t worried about not getting her back. As long as he had the Core, Y/N was safe. And it wasn’t like he was actually going to make a trade with that _philistine._ No, once he had Y/N safely returned to him he would create his next _masterpiece_ . He would give credit where credit was due, of course. He would name the piece after the subject: _Sebastian Castellanos._

Stefano looked up at the clock on the wall. If that neanderthal didn’t hurry, he should be too late. Stefano wouldn’t be there for the birth of his first child. His heir. Truly his greatest masterpiece.

He teleported unto the stage and began pacing. _Naturally_ , none of this had been in his original plan when he met Y/N. She was _exquisite_ , so he knew without a doubt the minute he first laid eyes upon her that he had to have her as a model. But he had never planned on having a child with her. Or loving her.

At first he had merely thought she was intriguing. She almost never said anything in the beginning, simply followed him around and did as she was told. Stefano knew this was out of fear. However, as their relationship continued, she became even more _interesting_ . Even funny at times. And not once did she have any complaint about his art. No, he could see she even _enjoyed_ some of it. Y/N was _perfection_. And eventually it wasn’t enough to solely take pictures of her. No, he had to have her. So he did.

But not in any of his wildest dreams would Stefano have thought of having a child with her. Never had he really thought of having a child at all. Children were messy and noisy and irritating. That had always been his opinion on the matter. Until recently. When he learned Y/N was with child, _his_ child, he was elated. Only once could he remember having ever been so happy. But he couldn’t let Y/N know that he knew. It seemed as if she didn’t even know herself. _However_ , he was impatient, so he sped up the time around her. Although, if he knew she was going to run away, he may not have. Stefano worried constantly, but if Y/N ran away, it was what she wanted. Whether or not she had been tricked, he knew to keep his distance. He always knew where she was though. It wasn’t hard. Especially once she had joined that _cretin_.

Since he knew where she was, Stefano obviously could have taken Y/N at anytime. But, he knew she was being well cared for(aside from being given rags to wear). And it was more _entertaining_ for Mr. Castellanos to assume he had a chance of getting the girl back. Stefano was going to have his darling, his muse, his Y/N back. And he was going to keep the Core. Not even that neophyte, _Father Theodore_ , would have her. He’d do nothing with her power. And soon, Stefano would be more powerful than even he.

Stefano chuckled. Yes, everything was working _perfectly_ . He had this world, he had the Core, and soon he would have his _amore_ , Y/N, and their child.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian stood outside the theater. Behind it was what Y/N called “The Aperture.” It groaned and creaked like an old machine as it hovered ominously above the area. The theater was surrounded by a fence, closed off with barbed wire(very original). Hanging on the barbed wire were some corpses and two portraits, fortunately he could tell they weren’t of Y/N or Lily. Unfortunately, whoever they were of was probably dead.

“What the hell are these things about?” He asked no one in particular. “Dammit. Lily’s inside there…” A shockwave seemed to go through him as the portraits started to burn. His communicator screeched as it picked up a signal. Sebastian tuned into it.

“You did not appreciate my beautiful Obscura’s performance.” It was that Italian bastard. “Perhaps, _this one_ is more to your liking. Listen:”

“No! Somebody help me!” It was a little girl’s voice. _Lily._

“I’m preparing one of my greatest works yet.” Stefano continued. “But you are not worthy enough to witness it… Not until you learn to respect my art.” Sebastian was ready to throw his communicator if it wasn’t for the fact he needed it. “ _Listen!_ Listen to their screams! The echoes of my work…” The communicator clicked off.

“Respect art, huh?” Sebastian asked. “Time to put Hoffman’s theory to the test.” The portraits in front of him steadily burned as he tuned into two new signals. Neither one was pleasant, to say the least. Instantly he could hear the now familiar string chorus and the tortured screams and cries of who he assumed were the unlucky models. He marked his map and stopped listening to the signals, he couldn’t bear hearing them. Sebastian started out, following his map to find the portraits. This part of town was in shambles just like the rest. Lost everywhere, empty cars and garbage littering the streets, and the tentacles of The Aperture clutching onto various pieces of the roads. But what had to be the most comforting thing(not) was probably the crazed laughter and saw he heard in the distance. Great. Why couldn’t anything stay down in this damned place? He stealthily but quickly made his way to the first signal, passing a group of three lost, all with torches, running in a circle around a pile of burning bodies.

“What the fuck?” He shook his head and decided it would be best to leave them alone, since they didn’t seem to be bothering anyone.

Sebastian reached the first signal. “Devil’s Own Taproom” Fitting name for a building in this place. He followed the signal behind the counter into a back storage room. On the wall hung one of the portraits he’d seen in front of the theater.

“So _this_ is his art?” He asked walking over to it. “It’s just a photo…” He pulled out his knife. “I’m gonna stab the shit out of you.” But as he thrust the knife forward a woman’s arm reached through the photo, grabbing his wrist and pulling him through the frame.

Sebastian looked around. In front of him was a “sculpture” of what had been in the photo. But this was more gruesome. It looked as if multiple bodies had been cut apart and messily sewn back together to form a larger, blood-stained, deformed body. It was revolting. A shockwave shoved him back and a large gate closed, blocking him from the sculpture. Sebastian tried to open it.

“Shit. Locked. Gotta find a key or something…” he grumbled. Turning around he began heading down the, what seemed to be never ending, hallway. As he passed a frame on the wall a shriek filled his ears and a picture filled the empty frame. Sebastian could make out Stefano standing at a table. A woman on the table in front of him and his back turned toward the camera. Or was it a window? He couldn’t tell.

“Shh. Don’t cry.” Stefano almost sounded sincere. It was unsettling. “You’re becoming _art._ ” He was completely unphased by the screaming. No surprise there. “ _You_ shall be part of my Obscura.” The woman screamed once more and the image was gone. Sebastian shook it off and continued down the hallway. As he passed another frame, it lit up. He was starting to think he was looking through windows. The view was now from the side and he could see Stefano was doing… _something_ to the woman. Luckily it was too dark for him to see much, but he had a couple guesses.

“Ah… flesh.” Stefano spoke to himself as he worked with his knife. “Less malleable than clay. Softer than marble. It really is the _perfect_ medium…” Once again he ignored the woman’s pleas as he sliced away. She shrieked and he paused. “Agh! I can’t concentrate like this!” His accent really coming out as he yelled. “A sculpture,” he continued calmly. “Doesn’t need a tongue.” Sebastian heard a sort of gagging noise and covered his ears before he had to hear anything else. The image disappeared and he continued. Thoughts of what he was going to do when he finally got his hands on Stefano filled his head.

At the end of the long hall was a small room with a table in the middle. All that sat on the table was a woman’s arm, standing straight up like some sort of jewelry display, holding a key. Sebastian took it and the ground around him shook. He cautiously turned back down the hallway, hearing groans and growls. Lost. Of course. And now, _of course_ , the hallway had changed shape to be longer. Great. Sebastian didn’t have time for this. He purposefully dispatched of them using a mix of stealth kills and bullets. Something about all of these stealth kills made him hungry. Specifically for some soup. Why _soup_? Whatever, he didn’t have time to be hungry. He continued on, lifting a closed gate, then opening the one keeping him from the sculpture.

“Well, there it is…” As soon as he spoke the lights shut out around him, he could see electricity moving through the air. The spotlights came back on revealing wires criss-crossed throughout the room. In front of him stood a plaque naming this monstrosity of a sculpture. _Lisa Crane._ The electric wires periodically lit up as Sebastian crept underneath them. He reached the sculpture and stood. “Okay, Hoffman, hope you were right about destroying these things… Here we go.” Pulling out his knife, he split open the largest of the sutures in the torso. The sculpture jerked apart at each of its seams until it exploded, sending Sebastian back to the taproom. The portrait burned into nothing as Sebastian regained his footing. “Destroying that freak’s work was actually therapeutic. But I’m not done yet, one more.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

The next portrait was in an old hotel halfway across this section of town. “Sanctuary Hotel” did everything in this town have such a fitting name? Sebastian followed the signal up a back staircase. This time he didn’t waste time being aggressive. “Let’s finish this.” He whispered as he stuck his hand through the frame. Once again iron gates slammed shut, separating him from the grotesque sculpture. And at the other end of the hall what did he see? That disgusting, spider-like tripod. _Obscura_. Sebastian held back a gag, remembering what he had seen and heard around the last portrait. Poor girls.

He snuck down the hall as he heard the stepping and “hua”s of the creature around him. “Why did it have to be you again?” He thought. He passed through a couple different rooms while looking for the key. One of them having just a bathtub and a camera aimed at said bathtub. Sebastian didn’t even want to guess what happened in there.

Fortunately for him, the next room had the key. Once again in a woman’s dismembered hand sitting on a table. “Alright, this should get me close to that art.” He heard the creature moaning again as he took the key. “Shit. Maybe I can sneak by it…” Luck was on his side today, the creature was loud and he had been practicing his stealth. It was an easy straight-shot to the gate. Which he hastily opened and locked behind him. Obscura stood moaning behind the gate as Sebastian continued on. “Made it… Hopefully I’m done with those things for a while.” He grumbled.

It was the same as the last one. Electric wires surrounding the sculpture and a gold plaque in front now reading _Maria Crane_. Once again he sliced open the largest center suture and the corpse exploded, sending him back to the hotel where he watched the portrait burn. “That’s both of them. Should have done the trick. Better see if I can get in the theater. Then I need to get Y/N.” Sebastian reminded himself as he walked out of the building.

* * *

 

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	10. Waiting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Sebastian prepare for what lies ahead

You sat quietly waiting for Sebastian’s return, praying that Stefano hadn’t gotten to him. Then of course, you worried about Lily. No, you had never met her, but she was just a little girl. Sebastian’s little girl. She didn’t ask for any of this.

You felt a jab in your stomach and moved your hand to where you felt it. Since being attacked by that… slime monster, the baby had certainly been making its presence known. You figured if it was anything like its father it would continue to do this for the rest of its life. ...If it had a life outside of here. Since Hoffman had mentioned that the baby might not be real, it was really all that was on your mind. When you first found out you were pregnant, you probably wouldn’t have cared either way. Considering this was unplanned and the father was _kind of_ a psychopath. But now, you’d grown attached to this little life inside of you and prayed every second that somehow it would be real. You looked up at Hoffman, who had been researching for this whole time you both sat waiting.

    “What’s the probability of the baby making it out of STEM?” You asked cautiously. She looked over at you, and thought for a minute.

    “I would say one in one trillion. It’s not very likely at all.” Hoffman seemed sad to have to tell you this, but at least she was being honest. “I’m sorry, I really don’t know. Since STEM is entirely in the machine and your subconscious, the fact you were able to get pregnant is really a miracle in itself.” She turned back to her computer and scrolled through some files. “It may be because he has such a strong influence over his surroundings, but I can’t confirm anything. This is completely foreign to me.” She shook her head.

    “Great.” You whispered, rubbing your belly where you just felt movement. Well, if you were going by how it felt, it certainly _felt_ real. But all of this _felt_ real, so _obviously_ you couldn’t go by that.

The exit door creaked open and Sebastian walked in, habitually closing and locking it behind himself. “Any progress?” you asked him. He acknowledged your question but took a minute to start making some coffee.

    “Bastard has Lily. Sent me a _lovely_ call with her crying.” This was a different level of Sebastian anger. You weren’t sure how to describe it, but it certainly made you nervous. He sighed. “Destroyed some of his “art” so now the path to the theater is open.”

    “Well, that’s… good.” You knew Stefano had to be pissed now. He would _die_ for his art. You were going to say ‘he would kill for it’ but that wasn't a very good analogy, considering that's _exactly_ what he did. Sebastian poured himself a cup of coffee.

    “I’m glad that destroying some of his work was effective.” Hoffman nodded to herself.

    “Yeah, well, it’s still going to be difficult to fight him. I’m gonna craft up some more supplies before we head out, Y/N.” Sebastian told you as he took a sip of his coffee. You nodded.

    “Can I have my gun back at any point soon?” You asked. Sebastian gave you a stern look, not so much like he was angry, but more like he was thinking and that was just his face.

    “I’ll think about it.” You nodded. You weren’t sure if you were ready to face Stefano again. The idea frightened you. But all the same, over the mon- weeks you spent with him, you two had a strange understanding of one another. Not exactly a friendship, but there were some non-verbal cues that you could both pick up from one another that someone else may not. But then again, you and Sebastian had started to get a bit like that. You supposed having your brains practically connected to each other probably had some effect on it. Also trying to survive an apocalypse probably helped strengthen the bonds between strangers.

“Better get started.” Sebastian said to no one in particular as he went over to the work bench. You figured all you could really do was mentally prepare yourself to see Stefano again.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Stefano paced up and down the aisle of the theater. How _dare_ he? How _dare_ that simpleton, that fool, that _philistine_ destroy _his_ work? Who did he think he was? Some sort of _king_? No, this simply wouldn’t do. Stefano couldn’t wait to rip the man apart. Although that hadn’t been in his original plan for that piece, he would make do. Apparently, nothing in this place could go according to plan anyway. Stefano threw his knife at the door and it stuck there. He clenched and unclenched his fists, the leather of his gloves crinkling. He pulled out another knife and threw it at the door.

He was trying his best to learn to control his anger. Afterall, he _was_ going to be a father soon. And of course he would discipline his child, but he didn’t plan on really _hurting_ them. Stefano decided one of his next pieces would have to be a wheel of death. Maybe that’s what he would do with Sebastian? Target practice.

He was about to throw another knife when he heard it, was that… singing? Stefano slowly looked around. Nope, wasn’t any of the models he had waiting for Sebastian’s arrival. He teleported onto the stage, knife in hand. He walked to one of the side dressing rooms. (Since this theater worked for both movies and plays, it had those.) The singing only grew louder. He couldn’t really make out what it was. And he was starting to think nothing in particular, just “la la la” to different notes.

He opened the locked door to see the girl exactly where he had left her. Coloring and singing. She didn’t even turn to look at him. Brave girl. Stefano closed the door and teleported so he was in front of her. She jumped and squeaked a bit. He stifled a laugh. The girl glared up at him. She was smart, and by now she had figured out he wouldn’t hurt her, whether or not she knew why. She looked back at her coloring.

“You don’t scare me.” She told him. He chuckled.

“ _Really_ , now?” She shook her head, not looking at him. He took this moment to take the drawing she was working on.

“Hey! Give it back!” She pleaded, reaching for it. Stefano studied the drawing. It was typical of a _child’s_ work, but in time, if she continued to work at it, she too may someday be _an_ _artist_.

“No, I think I’ll keep it.” He told her.

“Please, give it back!” She kept reaching for it, he simply held it higher so she couldn’t reach it. He turned and looked her in the eyes. She stopped fighting and froze. Clearly she was still at least a little afraid of him. Good.

“A _masterpiece_ must be displayed, no?” Stefano asked her. Her blue eyes widened from surprise. “I think I shall frame it.”

“But it’s not done.” She told him. He looked back at the paper in his hand. I mean, yes, one of the bodies was missing a head and another didn't have legs, but he assumed that was just part of the piece. He slowly nodded.

“Ah, yes, _well_ , I suppose we can’t display unfinished works.” He handed it back and began to walk out of the room. “Call for me when you have finished this _masterpiece_ of yours.” He closed the door and locked it behind him. He was starting to like this girl. What was her name again? Lily? It was a good name. Stefano decided that once Sebastian was out of the way, naturally, Lily would need a caretaker. And who better than himself? Yes, he would _adopt_ Lily. He chuckled. His once non-existent family had now grown four times its original size. He couldn’t wait to have his Y/N back and tell her the _wonderful_ news.

 

~*~*~*~

 

It was almost time. Sebastian was just about done with all of his preparation. You took a deep breath, you had no idea how this would go. And you knew for sure that you weren't ready to face Stefano again. But you had to. For Sebastian. For Lily.

“Y/N,” Sebastian started as he finished packing his ammo. “Let's go.” You nodded.

“Good luck. It's not going to be easy.” Hoffman told you both as she saw you out the door. “Contact me as soon as you're able.” Sebastian nodded and closed the door behind himself. He gestured towards the exit.

“How far is the theater from the port?” You asked.

“Practically across the street.” He told you.

“Well that's good.” You mumbled. When you left the Marrow and the safe house outside of it you were surprised to see that the sun was up. It was actually bright outside. Of course, the town was still falling apart and Lost were everywhere. Not to mention Aperture ominously floating over the theater. But hey! The sun was up! You hoped it was a good sign.

 

* * *

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	11. The Theater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Sebastian confront Stefano.

You and Sebastian made your way to the theater as quickly as possible. Corpses and blood littered your path. Typical, but it made you nauseous all the same. Sebastian paused to read the lettering on the front of the theater.

“A Father's Nightmare. Tonight Only.” He read aloud. “Very funny.” He grumbled. You thought it was a  _ little _ funny, but you weren't going to say that. You both continued inside. “He's gotta be in here somewhere…” Sebastian mumbled. Movie posters were replaced with Stefano's work, but other than that, it seemed  _ relatively _ normal. You remembered coming here a few times with your friends before everything went crazy.

“You dare to  _ destroy _ my work? You expect me  _ bend _ to your will?” Stefano's voice boomed throughout the building. “Just like  _ them _ . Thinking they can  _ sculpt _ me into what I am not.” You both looked around, unable to find him. “What they created in here… it's  _ marvelous. _ They  _ wasted _ it. Because  _ they _ had no imagination. Because  _ they _ are not  _ artists.  _ They want to control me.  _ Manipulate _ me.  _ You _ want to  _ stop _ me.” You both continued walking up the stairs. “But you have  _ failed _ . Because with the power of the Core… I can create my art  _ forever. _ ” You wanted to roll your eyes. He was so… extra. At the top of the stairs, Sebastian's communicator beeped as it picked up a signal behind you. You both followed it and he tuned in.

“This is what I have been waiting for all my life. For  _ both _ of my lives.” An apparition of Stefano appeared looking at the photo on the wall. “No more struggling. No more listening to  _ philistine _ critics. No more  _ pandering _ to the uneducated opinions of  _ callow _ neophytes. No more  _ rejection _ from  _ crude _ simpletons. I'm  _ finally _ free to be what I've always been: an  _ artist _ …” You didn't think you had ever heard him so excited. “And I have the greatest canvas ever  _ devised _ at my disposal. The world will finally  _ know _ and  _ revere  _ the name  _ 'Stefano Valentini' _ ” Sebastian shook his head and walked away, following the sound of the orchestra that could be heard in the distance. Serenade for Strings. Again. You followed closely behind Sebastian as he carefully opened the theater doors.

It was quiet inside and all of the lights were off. The seats were lined with people all in the same grey and black suits. Bags covered their heads and their hands were bound in front of them. Sebastian cautiously stepped forward with his gun out. You would have done the same had he given back your gun. 

“What the hell is he doing to these people?” He asked as he gestured for you to stay in the back, and hide behind the seats. You did so. One of the people in the seats moved a little and Sebastian crouched next to him. Before he could investigate further, the spotlights on the stage came on. There he was. Stefano. Purple-blue suit and all.

“This chase has been  _ entertaining _ …” he started, not yet looking up. You peaked out from behind the seats. “But even the greatest entertainments must come to an end.” You could see Sebastian slowly walking forward, gun aimed at Stefano. 

“The girl!? Where is she?” He demanded.

“I commend you for making it this far. If perseverance were an  _ art form… _ ” Stefano finally looked up at him. “You would be a  _ master _ .” he smiled. “Perhaps not a Michelangelo… but a Van Gogh at the very leas-”

“Enough art school bullshit! Where is she?”

“The core is safe. With  _ me _ . I took her on  _ his _ orders. But once I realized the  _ extent _ of her powers…” He began to walk the stage. “How could I  _ possibly _ hand her over? What I'm doing is more  _ important _ than  _ mere _ personal gain. _ ”  _ He turned towards Sebastian. “ _ He _ could  _ never  _ understand this.” You assumed he was talking about the preacher.

“He? Who is  _ he _ ?”

“It doesn't matter. _ He  _ won't be around much longer.” Stefano began to lift his hand. “My  work _ , _ _however_ , will  continue .” Beeping sounds could be heard as small red lights blinked on each of the captive audiences necks. “Picasso had his Blue Period…  _ I _ have entered my  _ Crimson _ Period.” If this weren't such a stressful situation you would have laughed.

“Wait, no!” Sebastian shot at Stefano but he shifted out of the way. His bangs had moved out of the way, and his damaged eye was now fully visible.

“ _ Behold _ ! My  _ latest _ creation!” Stefano clenched his fist, his damaged eye lighting a bright blue. 

“No!” Sebastian shouted as you both took cover. The music crescendoed and all at once the heads of everyone in the audience exploded. But there was nothing hitting the ground around you. You looked around to see that Stefano had frozen time mid-explosion. The blood almost reminded you of roses.

Stefano took a long deep breath and you shivered at the sound of it. “ _ Beautiful _ ! A  _ bouquet _ of  _ flesh  _ and  _ blood _ ...”

“You sick bastard!” Sebastian shouted at him.

“How will I  _ ever _ top  _ this _ ?” He sounded truly distressed. “I’ll  _ find _ a way.” Now he sounded determined. And a lot closer… You quickly turned right as Stefano grabbed your arm and phase-shifted back onto the stage. You would've tried pulling anyway, but he held on tightly. He lifted his other arm and a hallway formed behind you. “Her  _ fear _ is always inspiring.” He pulled you so you both began to walk down the hall, turning your back on Sebastian. “Nothing like the corruption of innocence to spark the  _ fire _ of creation!” You could hear Sebastian shooting at Stefano but he teleported you both out of the way. Stefano continued to pull you down the hallway as you watched Sebastian run after you. You could hear Stefano saying something but your mind couldn't comprehend it, you were thinking about too much else. Where's Lily? What is he doing? What's going to happen now? Suddenly the hallway broke apart between you and Sebastian. The pieces floating in a red rift in space. You called out for Sebastian but knew he couldn't hear you. A door closed behind you and Stefano let go of your arm. 

“Y/N, my  _ darling _ , my-” You punched him as hard as you could. Aside from running away, this was your first act of defiance. You figured you were carrying his baby, you deserved to finally be able to do what you wanted. And even though you were scared, you reminded yourself  _ he's nothing more than a man _ . 

Stefano reeled back, his hand on his face. He looked shocked, but also like he was about to kill you. He pulled back his hand and you closed your eyes, bracing yourself for impact. But that wasn't what happened. No, instead you felt his hand rest on your abdomen as he sighed. You opened your eyes. “I’m  _ trying _ .” He mumbled.

“Trying what?” You pushed his hand away. “To kill Sebastian? To take over this place?” 

“I am  _ trying _ to be  _ nice _ !” He told you. “To be- be  _ good _ !” He was struggling with finding the right words. 

“But you're still going to kill Sebastian. And hurt Lily.”

“I would  _ neve _ -” he put his hand on his hip and looked away, knowing that  _ that _ was a lie. He looked back, pointing to add emphasis. “He is a  _ neanderthal _ . And I  _ need _ Lily for my  _ work _ .”

“Okay, so maybe he's not the most  _ refined _ but that doesn't mean he needs to die!” Stefano was going to say something but you both heard the door start to creak open. He grabbed your arm and teleported you to a nearby room. Before you could say anything, he was gone. 

“Dammit!” You tried to kick the wall but almost fell over. There was still so much you wanted to say. And this argument was  _ not _ done. You found the nearest chair and sat down, crossing your arms as best as you could. You could feel your baby also protesting. It hurt a bit more than usual, but you didn't think too much of it. “Yeah, I know, honey. You'll learn that your dad has a lot of temper tantrums.” You said as you rubbed your belly. You thought for a minute. “But you may never get to meet him anyway…” You knew that Sebastian wasn't going to stop until either he got Lily, or Stefano was dead.

 

“No more running. No more games.” Sebastian said as he opened the doors. 

“Agreed.” Stefano turned to look at him, camera in hand. “You're beginning to  _ bore _ me.” He pulled out his knife, smiling. This was it. The first of the last two obstacles. The  _ only _ two obstacles standing in the way of his perfect family and perfect future. “Your death will be  _ art _ .” He pointed at Sebastian with his knife then shifted out of the way of the bullet headed towards him. “It's time to put a  _ signature _ on it.” 

Sebastian ducked behind one of the gallery walls. He looked around for Stefano, hearing him spinning his knife. “You cannot  _ hide _ from what you cannot  _ see _ .” He could hear him say. The second Stefano stopped teleporting Sebastian shot a shock bolt near him, electrocuting him. 

“ _ Dammit _ !” He teleported away as soon as he was able, not letting Sebastian land another shot. This was going to be harder than he thought. But he had to win. He  _ had _ to. “You can’t avoid me.” He shifted behind Sebastian and threw his knife, cutting his side. 

Sebastian tried to retaliate, but by the time he pulled the trigger, Stefano was somewhere else. “I’m over here!” Sebastian aimed. “Or am I  _ here _ ?” Stefano quickly grabbed him by the shirt before he could move out of the way. He pulled Sebastian close to his face, and stabbed him in the shoulder. “Your death will be my  _ masterpiece _ .” He pulled out his knife and teleported away.

“Shit.” Sebastian grumbled as he used a syringe. He decided it would be best to set traps. He fired a couple shock bolts at the wall, knowing if Stefano got too close he’d be electrocuted again. And, low and behold, that’s exactly what happened. Stefano fell to the ground, clutching his bad eye. 

“Ugh… I’ve had enough of this.” He started to stand. “Prepare to  _ die _ !” As he stood he pulled his arms away from his body and the wall behind him crashed down, revealing Aperture. “There will be nothing left of you when I’m done.” He said as he phase-shifted out of the way. Aperture crashed down it’s tentacles, trying to crush Sebastian. 

Luckily, Sebastian was still pretty fast and able to dodge. Stefano teleported back into the room. “I’ll take care of you  _ myself _ .” He marched towards Sebastian, teleporting every couple seconds so he wouldn't be shot. Sebastian quickly grabbed the first bolt he could and fired it. A cloud of smoke surrounded them. He could hear Stefano coughing. “Smoke!?  _ Really? _ ” Stefano fixed his hair and brushed off his suit before he phase-shifted out of the way. Sebastian almost felt like apologizing, instead he laughed it off and pulled out an explosive bolt. He created a few trip wires and took a mental note of each one so he wouldn’t run into them. 

Stefano started running towards him. “ _ Philistine _ !” He was slammed into the wall as the explosive went off from the tripped wire. Every muscle in his body ached as he stood up and phase-shifted away. He knew he couldn’t take much more. 

Sebastian knew this too. He prepared one last shock bolt. Stefano teleported around him, and when he stopped to throw his knife, Sebastian fired at the ground in front of him. Electricity shot through him and he fell back, dropping his camera behind him. Aperture’s light faded and it’s large eye closed as it slowly fell from it’s position in the sky. Sebastian walked over to Stefano. He could see that the entire right side of his face was red. The veins coming from his bad eye were a deep maroon.

“Ah… I had so much left to create.” Stefano looked up at Sebastian. His whole world a deep shade of red. He was dying. He  _ failed _ . He wouldn’t have Lily. He wouldn’t have Y/N. He wouldn’t have  _ his child _ . He would never even meet them. “You’ve destroyed my legacy…”

 

The door opened and you quickly stood up. If the door opened of its own accord, you knew it couldn't mean anything good. You turned down the hall and ran into the large room. You saw Sebastian walking towards Stefano, who was laying on the ground. He smiled up at Sebastian. 

“Look at me…You made me into a  _ masterpiece _ .” Stefano reached out for something. “Must record it. If only I had my camera.” He was growing quieter. “Where did it go..?” He stared off, his whole body going limp.

That’s it. He was gone.  _ Stefano was gone. _ The pain in your stomach returned. Sebastian took a deep breath and turned around, he was surprised to see you there. You silently walked past him towards Stefano.

“Wait, Y/N-” 

“Still time…” Stefano grabbed his camera. He was alive! “For one  _ last _ photo!” He sat up, smiling, and lifted the camera to take the picture. Sebastian turned around with his gun drawn.

“No!” Pain shot through you as you fell back. 

Sebastian ran over to you. Stefano moved towards you as best he could and put his hand on your shoulder. The pain worsened.

“Shit.”

“Mio Dio, mio  _ Dio _ …” Stefano repeated quietly. You looked between the two of them, not sure what had happened. Sebastian quickly pulled out his knife and cut a strip of fabric off of his shirt. Moving Stefano's hand out of the way and replacing it with the fabric.

“Hold that.” He told him. Stefano seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in and weakly nodded. He pressed onto the fabric. You thought you might pass out from the pain. Sebastian looked through the supplies on his person and found a syringe. He quickly rolled up your sleeve and shot it into you. Instantly you felt a little better, but you could feel your shoulder and chest were starting to get wet. 

“This is  _ your _ fault!” Stefano told him. Sebastian gave him a look.

“We don't have time for this. Can you stand?” He asked him. Stefano used his hand that wasn't on your shoulder to attempt to brace himself. He almost fell over, but he stood. “We need to get out of here.” Sebastian had replaced Stefano's hand on your shoulder and he picked you up bridal style. Your whole body ached at the movement. But you could see Sebastian was in pain too. Was that blood on his shoulder?

“Where are we going?” Stefano asked. They had already started walking as quickly as they could out the door. You could feel every step like a stab through your body. You couldn’t imagine how Stefano felt as he limped behind Sebastian, struggling to keep up.

“A safe house across from the theater.” Stefano nodded and stopped Sebastian by grabbing his shoulder. Suddenly you were there. Sebastian seemed confused for a minute but when Stefano fell into a chair from exhaustion, he understood. He set you down on the ground, you could feel most of the upper half of your shirt was wet. Sebastian pulled out his communicator as Stefano sat on the ground next you, placing your head on his lap and putting pressure on your shoulder once again. “Hoffman! It's Sebastian. Get to exit D5 right now. Bring all of the medical supplies you can, Y/N’s been shot.” Oh, so that's what happened. 

Then you felt the worst pain you had ever felt in your life. Worse than even the bullet in your shoulder. You cried out, putting a hand on your abdomen as if pressure would help. “And I think she's gone into labor.” The general tone of Sebastian's voice for that phrase couldn't be described as anything but “ _ fuck _ .” Stefano's eye widened as he looked between you and Sebastian. This was certainly not how he wanted this to go.

“I'm on my way.” You heard Hoffman say through the communicator then heard it click off.

* * *

 

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	12. New Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian runs off to find Lily while you and Stefano meet your own child.

The three of you waited in silence for Hoffman. It couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but to Stefano it felt like hours. And he was obviously in a lot more pain than he was letting on. You were reaching up to touch his face when you felt the pain in your abdomen again. You gritted your teeth and tried not to cry out as the pain grew worse. Thankfully, after a little bit it faded.

Stefano looked at you as sympathetically as he could. He still enjoyed watching people in pain, it was just a part of who he was. But he was _genuinely_ concerned at the moment.

Next thing you knew, Hoffman was in the room with you. She was starting to set down a couple duffel bags of supplies and when she looked up, she dropped them. Sebastian looked in the direction she was looking

“Yeah, he wasn't exactly part of the plan.” He glared over at Stefano who returned a look just as mean.

“Right, well,” Hoffman started digging in the bags, she pulled out all sorts of things, none of which you really wanted to see. Pliers, needles, etc. “First matter of business, getting the bullet out.” Oh, you were _not_ ready for this.

“Don't even touch me until you treat Stefano.” You told her. Stefano and Sebastian both gave you a look.

“Y/N, you are-” Stefano started.

“Stefano first.” You weren't taking no for an answer. You lost him once, if only for a few seconds, and you learned that you never wanted to lose him again. Which surprised even yourself, but it was true. Stefano looked like he wanted to roll his eyes, but didn’t want to argue with you. He took his suit jacket off, folded it up and placed it under your head as he stood up. He limped over to Hoffman and sat in a nearby chair. Sebastian went over to you and held pressure on your shoulder, starting to help you get your shirt unbuttoned. He was careful not to unbutton it _too_ low.

Hoffman was apprehensive to be helping the psychopath she'd been told so much about, but this wasn't really a situation where she wanted to argue with the patient. So, she did as you asked. She bandaged all the smaller wounds that she could see on Stefano without undressing him, and planned on bandaging the right side of his face, more for precautionary reasons. When she reached for Stefano's face he grabbed her wrist, stopping her.

“I’ll do it myself. _Thank you_.” He took the bandage from her and let go of her wrist. He then began to wrap it around the side of his face. After a minute, he looked up at Hoffman, wanting to make a remark about her fear or something like that, but he decided it would be smartest to just say, “Help her.” She looked surprised that he would say that, but she nodded. Hoffman quickly handed him a syringe and then grabbed her bags and went over to you. Sebastian had already helped you take off enough of your shirt that the wound was exposed.

“Stefano, give me your scarf.” Sebastian told him. Stefano looked offended. _His_ scarf? Oh no. Not gonna happen. “Y/N should have something to bite down on.” Sebastian told him. Stefano reluctantly took off the scarf and threw it over to Sebastian. He caught it right before it smacked him in the face. Sebastian folded up the scarf and put it in your mouth. He started to hold you down.

“Ready?” Hoffman asked. You closed your eyes and nodded. You bit down hard on the scarf as pain seared through you. You thought you might pass out and you felt the tears starting to fall down your cheeks. After a minute, the pain was less evident and you heard a “clink” noise. The bullet was out. Thank God. “I'm going to start sewing it now.” Hoffman told you. You nodded, still not opening your eyes.

It didn't take long for her to finish stitching the wound closed. Of course, she _did_ have to stop when you had another contraction. Oh right, you still had to get something else out today. _That_ you were _definitely_ not ready for. Hoffman finished bandaging your shoulder and you took Stefano's scarf out of your mouth.

“How do you feel, _mi amore_?” Stefano asked. You opened your eyes. You hadn't even noticed that he had moved closer and was now sitting in a chair next to you. He looked a lot better, but still not the best.

“Like I have a small human ripping their way out of me.” As if you needed reminding, your body thought it would be a good time for another contraction.

“Just breathe. It'll pass.” Sebastian told you. Hoffman took this time to find a book in one of her bags. It was about the basics of birth and labor.

“Wait, so you have _never_ done this before?” Stefano asked her, concern evident in his voice.

“I'm a psychologist. Not an Obstetrician.” She told him. He seemed even more nervous by the second and you were trying not to let it affect you.

“I’ll be fine. It's fi-” You scrunched up your face from the pain. Okay, so maybe you wouldn't be fine. You didn't care what you needed to do, you just wanted this to be over.

“Sorry, Y/N, I don't think anything is going to happen for a while. Maybe you should try and get some rest?” Hoffman told you, looking up from her book. Stefano nervously bounced his leg and looked like he was going to start biting his nails, but remembered he had gloves on.

“When Myra had L- Oh my God. _Lily_.” Sebastian grabbed Stefano by the collar. “Where is she!?” It seemed as if Stefano had completely forgotten about her too. But he didn’t seem very concerned, more annoyed that Sebastian was ruining his shirt.

“Dressing room on the right side of the stage. It was locked. She should be _fine_.” Sebastian swore under his breath as he let go of Stefano’s collar, pushing him away and almost knocking him over. He reloaded his gun and ran out the door, slamming it behind him. Stefano fixed his collar and put his scarf back on, grumbling in Italian. Hoffman had looked up during their yelling, but she went back to her book once Sebastian was gone. You sat up as best you could, your body protesting.

“I hope Lily’s okay.” You thought aloud.

“I left her in a _locked_ room. In a larger _locked_ room. In a _locked_ building. She is _fine_ .” Stefano assured you, crossing his legs. “Unlike _some_ people, I keep track of my children.”

“Lily isn’t yours.” You pointed out. Stefano clicked his tongue, looking at Hoffman. It appeared there was more he wanted to say, but he wouldn’t while she was there. You would’ve pressured him to tell you, but the start of another contraction stopped you from doing so.

 

~*~*~*~

 

It took kicking some doors down, but Sebastian was able to get into the theater. Headless corpses still littered the seats, but the blood was no longer suspended in the air. The intensity of the iron smell gave Sebastian a headache, however he’d certainly been through worse. He continued on to the stage and found the dressing room. He tried the handle, still locked. He’d have to kick it down. Dammit. He really didn’t want to scare Lily. Sebastian was readying himself to kick it when he remembered that he _could_ just knock, like a _normal_ person. He gently knocked on the door.

“Lily?” He heard a chair clatter in the room. “Don’t be afraid, honey. It’s me, Dad. Open the door.” It was quiet for a bit.

“No… No you’re not!” Lily responded with a shaking voice. Oh no, was she crying? “Dad is dead!” Sebastian took a deep breath and shook his head.

“Honey, I know that’s what they told you. But it’s not true!” He tried to open the door. “Lily! Please, I… Open the door, Lily.” He tried to open it again. He heard some noise on the other side of the door and backed up. He then heard a click, and Lily opened the door a crack. He could only see a sliver of her face, but it was red and tear stained. “You don’t have to hide.” Sebastian told her, crouching down and looking as non-threatening as he possibly could.

Suddenly, the theater shook. Lily let go of the door and it swung open. Sebastian stood and looked around. Behind Lily, the wall began to melt away into white goop and a cloaked figure emerged. Sebastian drew his gun and aimed. The figure continued to calmly walk forward, every step they took turning the ground beneath them into slime. The cloak left their legs and stomach uncovered. It was a woman. She looked up, a slender face and lock of blonde hair were evident. She seemed so familiar to Sebastian. Lily was stunned, staring at her. The cloaked woman lowered her hood when she reached her.

“Come to mother, Lily. I will protect you.” Her blonde hair was pulled loosely into a bun and the top half of her face looked like it was melting into slime like everything else she touched. But even with her face altered, Sebastian still knew her.

“Myra..?” Sebastian lowered his gun. She looked up at him, black holes where her eyes should have been.

“Get away!” She raised her hand towards him. “You can’t have her!” She flexed her fingers and instantly the large slime monster from the Marrow broke through the floor between them, knocking Sebastian to the ground. He stood, trying to clear the dust with his hands. The creature held Myra in its large hand as it slowly sank into the ground. Where was Lily? Sebastian looked closer to see Lily laying in the same hand beside Myra. She was reaching out for him.

“Noooooooooo!” Sebastian ran to the edge of the great chasm the creature had created. Upon skidding to a halt, the floor gave way beneath him and he plunged into the darkness.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sweat dripped down your forehead. You couldn’t do this. Oh god, you couldn’t do this. You were too weak.

“Almost there, Y/N.” Hoffman told you. But you’d stopped believing her after the first ten times. You shook your head.

“I-I can’t.”

“You’re so close, just a little more!” She reassured you. You still didn’t feel like you could do it. But you tried pushing again, crying out as you did. You heard a camera click.

“Stefano… if you do not stop taking pictures, I will ring your goddamn neck!” You yelled at him. He looked offended.

“ _This_ is a momentous occasion!”

“I. Don’t. CARE!” You cried out as you pushed again. You grabbed tightly on to the blanket Hoffman had found to cover your top half, and your shoulder protested from the strain. You heard the camera yet again.

“I see the head!” Hoffman certainly sounded surprised. Of course you remembered this _was_ her first time doing anything like this. But it kind of sounded like she didn’t believe that you could actually do it. Unbelievable. Granted, _you_ didn’t believe you could do it just a couple minutes ago, but that wasn’t the point. Spite gave you enough energy to push again. Cries and camera flashes filled the room.

“STEFANO.” He looked just as offended as the first time you yelled at him. _Although_ this time, you swore, there _was_ a hint of fear.

“Just a little more and you’ll be done!” Hoffman reassured you over the cries. You nodded and took a couple deep breaths. This was it. You cried out as you gave one long, final push. You could feel something tear, but the pressure on your lower half was mostly gone. The cries continued and more camera flashes followed. You could see Hoffman beginning to wrap the baby in a towel. You laid back on Stefano’s jacket, the only pillow you had had during this endeavour.

Stefano set down his camera as he crouched next to Hoffman. He was speechless, staring at the little human in her arms. They continued to cry, not enjoying the cold air at all. Stefano spoke quietly in Italian.

Naturally, you couldn’t understand him. But you could pick out one word. _Girl_ . You had a little girl. You couldn’t stop the tears that fell down your cheeks. Hoffman handed you the screaming baby, and you just laid her on your chest. You didn't even care about all of the blood and whatever else she was covered in. Holding her close as you cried along with her, you heard more clicks from a camera, but you didn’t care anymore. You had her, and she was real, and she was safe. _Your baby girl._

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian woke with his head laying on his desk in his room. The room his subconscious created to keep him safe from the rest of STEM. He stood up.

“Myra?” Looking around, he was alone. Kidman’s farewell to him when he entered STEM echoed in his head.

“I’ll be out here for you… and someone else will be _in there_ for you...” He didn’t understand at the time, but it made some more sense now.

“Kidman… She knew about Myra.” He thought aloud. A static sort of noise came from his communicator. He pulled it out to take a look.

“But I can be silenced. If you let me in…” A deep voice spoke through the static. Suddenly the signal was lost. Sebastian tried tuning in to find it again, to no avail.

“Shit.” Sebastian placed his communicator back on his belt. He heard a quiet echo of chanting and looked up to see the exit mirror had been replaced by some sort of altar. “What is this? Where’s the mirror?” As he walked closer he was able to see that surrounding the altar were lit candles and pools of blood. Placed in the center was some sort of eye symbol. Stefano? No, this was different. Sebastian knew he had seen this before. Before he had even met Stefano. But there was something else on the altar. Was that… Lily’s doll? He reached for it and instantly he was in some sort of church. Large men on fire marched towards him from all directions. He braced himself to be hit by one. Then silence. Sebastian opened his eyes and they were gone. Looking around, he could tell he was now in some sort of prison.

“Where is this place?” The only light came from small groups of lit candles around the area. The same altar from before stood in front of him, but Lily’s doll was replaced by a skull. Great. Coffins, burnt corpses, and fallen bricks littered the ground. Whatever this place was, it wasn’t good.

Sebastian pushed open the door to the long hall. Immediately he was hit with a familiar pain in his head. He placed his hand on his head as if the pressure would make it stop.

“Welcome, Seeker.” It was the same voice from before. But there was no one around. “You have come for answers. I am here to help you…” The pain went away and Sebastian tried to catch his breath.

“Who… what was that?” He asked himself. He continued to explore the area. Cells and bloodstains lined the dark hallways. A number of passages had caved in so he was limited on where he could go. Sebastian turned down another hall and the chandelier fell, creating a small fire in front of him. He backed up, but it quickly burned itself out. He continued through the door in front of him. His new surroundings couldn’t be described as anything other than a sewer of blood. That was certainly reassuring. He went on to the next room, which was full of various torture devices and cages.

“Torture devices… this place is almost medieval.” Some bodies were still on the devices. Their anguished screams still evident on their face.

“Oh shit… looks like they were burned alive.” Sebastian mumbled. What the hell was this place? He walked forward. Chilling screams stopped him in his tracks. So there were still other people in here? He pulled out his crossbow, cautiously walking down the stairs. Another long dark hallway. Lovely. The growls and groaning of Lost could be heard. Even better.

The large chamber he found himself in was empty aside from some more coffins and caskets. Was he in some kind of catacomb? The halls on either side of the main chamber were lined with cells. A catacomb that doubled as a prison? Each cell had only an altar with the same strange eye symbol. Where had he seen it before? The only “living” prisoners he could see were Lost, some of them still praying in their deranged state. He continued on through the halls, another headache stopping him in his tracks.

“You must go deep to find what you seek.” The same voice as before. “Only by descending can you rise again.” Once again, the headache faded with the voice.

“What's going on..?” Sebastian asked as he climbed down a ladder. Suddenly the ladder broke, knocking him to the ground in another cell. “Dammit.” He grumbled, rubbing his back where it hit the brick floor.

“You lost everything.” The candles in the hall in front of him began to light themselves. “Your failure to regain led to inaction. Which led to despair. And despair led to self-destruction…” At the other end of the hall stood the silhouette of a tall man in a robe. Sebastian took a step forward and the ground began to quake. “You are your own downfall.” Sebastian was shoved back down the long corridor and slammed into the brick floor. He struggled to regain his breath after all of the air was knocked out of him.

“You didn't believe in your wife.” It was Lily's voice. “You refused to see.” As she spoke her words were scorched into the walls around him. “It's all your fault.” His own voice echoed hers. “You are a failure.” Sebastian stood, looking around at the painful words. “Your daughter is lost because of you.” He turned to the one wall that had no writing. “ _You couldn't save her._ ”

“You hold the key to easing your torment.” It was the deep voice again. The bricks in front of him fell away, revealing only darkness and his home. “I can guide you to the lock.”

“Who are you!?” Sebastian cried into the void. “What do you want with me?” He began walking towards his home.

“You cannot change your past. You can only embrace it.” The deep voice told him. As he drew closer he could see Lily sitting in the path. “Go toward it. Don't avoid it.”

“Is that…” Sebastian took a step forward. “Lily!?” The space between them burst into flame. He tried to run through it, and was stopped by a large hand at his throat. One of the men on fire from before. The flame being threw Sebastian to the ground and the world around him returned to one of the dark catacomb chambers. Two more fire beings marched towards him.  It was the vision from before. The same altar in the room and everything. He was able to quickly dispatch of them. The second the last one went down, the eye symbol burned into the wall behind the altar.

“Stefano defied me. Became a thorn in my side.” The voice explained. “A thorn which you tried to remove. For that, you will be rewarded.”

“Stefano? This guy knows him..?” As the bricks fell away to reveal a path, Sebastian remembered that situation he had left you and Stefano in. “God, I hope she's okay.”

The next room he entered was some sort of sacrificial chamber. On the floor, a series of drains in the shape of the eye symbol. Blood trickled through them from a large pool. “Ugh…” Sebastian continued on, covering his nose from the smell. He entered another chamber. This one looking more like an arena of sorts, with a path around the top. Corpses littered the ground and blood streamed through the drains in the walls. Sebastian drew his handgun as he cautiously stepped forward.

“Sebastian Castellanos.” Sebastian aimed his gun at the tall man in front of him. It was the voice he’d been hearing. The man stood facing towards another altar. “You’ve finally come. I've been waiting for you.”

“Who the hell are you?”

“My followers call me Father Theodore…” He looked up at the large eye symbol above him. “I hope that you will call me that too… _friend_.” The symbol blazed so brightly, Sebastian had to use his arm to block the light, but he continued pointing his gun.

“Another lunatic with a god complex, huh?” He asked. “I already almost killed one of you today.” Theodore turned to look at him.

“Of course you did.” He turned around the rest of the way, resting his hands on a cane in front of him. “That is how you deal with every challenge in your life. Through brute force and intimidation. And look where it has led you.” He paused. “Into a hell of your own making. Lower your weapon.” He put two fingers up to his temple. “Use your mind instead of your fist for once.” He lowered his hand to rest again on his cane. “We have the same goals, Sebastian. We can help each other.” The fire’s light had faded so Sebastian no longer needed to shield his eyes. He tightened his grip on his hand gun. “Join me.” Theodore held a hand out to him. “You will be reunited with your daughter…” He placed his hand on his chest. “…and _I_ will have the power of the Core.”

“I already know who has Lily.” Sebastian told him. Theodore lowered his hand back onto his cane.

“Yes. And Myra won't give her up so easily.” His tone shifted to a more irritated one.

“What!?” How did Theodore know who he was talking about? “Where are they?” Sebastian demanded.

“I wish that I could tell you. But you are not ready. You must be folded into my flock before I can share that knowledge…”

“I said TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!” Sebastian yelled.

“Accept my invitation.” Theodore remained calm. “I can lead you away from your own darkness. I can lead you to Lily.”

“Sorry.” Sebastian shook his head, speaking through gritted teeth. “I'm not a follower.”

“So be it.” Theodore tapped his cane once on the ground and instantly flames began to surround Sebastian. “You have so much pain. The events of the past haunt your every moment.” Sebastian backed away from the growing flames. “I showed you the path here. You must learn that I am here to _help_ . Return to me willingly. Then we can assume our natural roles. Not as adversaries, but as _allies_.” The ground began to shake around Sebastian. “Farewell for now, Sebastian.” A wave of blood poured from the nearby sewer grate, knocking Sebastian to the ground as the world went black.

* * *

 

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	13. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Stefano work on adjusting to everything that's going on and Sebastian finds out he's got more help in Union than he originally thought.

A few hours had passed. Sebastian still wasn’t back. Of course you were worried, but you couldn’t really express that. Stefano couldn’t care any less about him. Especially considering Sebastian almost killed the two of you. You gently rocked your daughter in your arms. The second she had stopped crying she was out like a light. Naturally, she cried the whole time you and Hoffman were cleaning her off. But after that? Yeah, she was out. You liked the quiet, but it was weird after having been so loud. You heard the click of a camera from over your shoulder.

“You probably have over a million pictures by now.” You told Stefano. He’d been watching the two of you like a hawk, not saying a word. 

“Nonsense.” He told you as he took another. “Even  _ if _ I did, it is still not enough. Although no  _ photo _ could  _ truly _ capture her beauty.” He snapped another picture. You had to agree. She was beautiful. She had a cute little button nose and a little bit of dark hair on the top of her head.

“Why don’t you hold her for a bit instead?” You suggested. “I could use a nap.” You were about to hand her to him when he quickly backed away. You stared at him for a minute. Stefano shook his head. 

“Have Hoffman hold her.” He told you. You were surprised. You had guessed he would want nothing more than hold his child. And suggesting for someone else to hold her was even more out of character.

“Why won’t you hold her?” It was now you realized Stefano hadn’t even touched her once. He kept at least two feet away at all times. He furrowed his brow. You assumed he wanted to say something but it would be taken as a sign of weakness, so he couldn’t. You rolled your eyes. “We’re kind of stuck together for the rest of our lives whether we like it or not. You better learn to talk to me at some point.” He glared at you, but he still knew you had a point.

“I will  _ taint _ her.” He finally admitted. You gave him a confused look. “She is like a  _ flower _ . Pure,  _ fragile _ . If  _ I _ touch her she will break.” You were shocked to hear that he thought that way, but it made sense. Stefano was a murderer. He knew this. And she was important to him. His sweet little newborn.

“That’s not gonna happen.” You assured him. He was doubtful. But he reluctantly walked closer and crouched next to you. You handed him your daughter, and he practically froze, afraid that even the smallest movement would wake her. “You can relax. She’s fine.” Honestly, you think he may have even stopped breathing. “Stefano, seriously, she’s fine.” He slowly let out a long breath. Ah, so he  _ was _ holding his breath. You laughed a little.

“So what are you two naming her?” Hoffman asked. You had forgotten she was still in the room, since she had sat so quietly at the computer. But a name? You hadn’t even thought about that. Not like you really had a chance to, with all the running and panicking you had been doing. 

“Uh… Stefano? Any suggestions?” He was too busy staring at the baby to even notice you were talking to him. You sighed and poked his shoulder. He continued staring at her.

“ _ What _ ?” Stefano whispered. Ah, there’s the attitude you were more accustomed to. You were afraid the birth of his child had changed him completely. Not like that would be such a terrible thing though. His psychopathic tendencies and thirst for blood weren’t exactly the best qualities of a new parent.

“Any name suggestions?” 

“The  _ eyes _ are the windows to the soul. We have not even  _ seen _ her’s yet. There is  _ no _ way to pick a  _ fitting _ name until then.” He didn’t look away from her for even a second, and he spoke so quietly you could hardly hear him. You rolled your eyes.

“Alright then. I guess we’ll have to wait. Until then, I’m going to sleep.” You laid back and covered yourself more with your blanket. “Don’t forget to breathe.” You jokingly reminded him.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian woke to the sound of rapid gunshots. A machine gun? As well as the sound of… crying?  _ Lily? _ He groggily opened his eyes to see her standing in front of him, wiping away her tears as she wept. She turned and walked away.

“…Wait!” He reached out for her, but she was gone. Just a mirage. In her place stood a young woman firing an assault rifle out the window of the small cabin they were in. Her hair was up and she wore what looked to be half of a Mobius uniform and a t-shirt.

“Look who finally woke up.” She complained between shots. “About time.” She reloaded. “I could use a little help here! You know how to use a gun, right?” Sebastian weakly stood up and looked out the nearest window. Swarms of Lost were walking through the fog of the forest towards them. It looked like a scene straight out of a horror movie. He pulled out his handgun, taking off the safety. “Take that side. Keep shooting until they’re dead or we run out of ammo!”

“What the hell is going on here?” He asked after taking one down. 

“We can talk later! Just focus on staying alive!” She shouted. Sebastian nodded and shot a couple more down. “Looks like you’ve done this before.” She joked.

“Too many times to count.” They finished off the first round.

“Grab some supplies while you can. I can hear more coming.” The woman told him as she reloaded.

“Alright. But I’m getting some answers when this is all over.”

She was right. More Lost just kept coming. There had to have been more than thirty they had taken down.

“Check the back.” She told him. “I can hear more on the way.”

“Dammit.” Sebastian reloaded again. He was getting low on ammo. They shot down a few more.

“They just keep coming!” She yelled, knocking one off of her with the butt of her gun.

“Then so will we!” Sebastian shot another down.

It was quiet for a couple minutes. Were they done? Was it over? Growling filled the air around them.

“Hey… what was that noise?” The woman asked.

“Oh shit…” Sebastian knew what it was. The multi-headed, crawling monstrosities he first encountered after Y/N passed out. “Watch out!” The wall beside them crashed down as one of the beasts broke in.

“Ugh! What are these things!?” She shot blindly at the creatures, not taking any chances to let them get close to her.

“Doesn’t matter! Just kill ‘em!” Sebastian shouted, shooting one in one of it’s faces. The creature screeched and fell to the floor. The woman dispatched of two more Lost in the time it took Sebastian to shoot down the second beast.

“I think that’s the last of ‘em.” She reloaded and wiped some sweat off of her brow. “Come on, we gotta keep moving.” She began to walk out the back of the cabin. “Thanks. I don’t know if I could’ve done that on my own. I’m Esmeralda Torres.”

“I’m--”

“Sebastian.” She laughed a little. “I know.”

“You do?”

“It looks like we got ‘em  for now. We should make a move before more show up.” Torres started to push a cart out from in front of the exit. Sebastian reached out to help, but it seemed like she had it. He turned and looked around.

“How did I wind up here?” They walked out the door, guns at the ready. “And who are you?”

“No time for twenty questions.” She turned to look at him. “My safe house isn’t too far. We can talk on the way there, come on.” They began walking down the path through the fog. “Try to stay quiet, there might be more of those things.”

“You can at least tell me how you know my name.” Sebastian grumbled.

“Kidman told me to keep an eye out for you.”

“Kidman?”

“She said she would try to get you help if The Plan went to shit. And who you are so...”

“Wait… I’m lost… what plan?”

“Getting Lily out of here.” Torres said it like it was obvious. Which Sebastian figured it probably should have been. “And then, taking Mobius down for good.” They continued walking. So Kidman was trying to take down Mobius? Who all was involved in this plan? “Wait a second…” Torres ran ahead and stopped in front of a landslide. “Shit…”

“Let me guess, the way to your safe house?” Typical. Torres sighed.

“There might be another way, come on.” She turned and walked the other way.

“Wait, hold on. Your plan… Kidman didn’t say anything about that…”

“Yeah, well, I’m sure she wasn’t able to debrief you on that in front of everybody.” They walked up to some fallen trees blocking the path. “Over here. Someone’s gotta lift this while the other crawls through.” They both crouched. Sebastian grabbed on to the tree.

“Alright, I’ll just-” 

“Alright, get under!” Torres was already holding it up for him. He stood and stared at her for a sec.

“Whoa, you alright? Let me hel-”

“Get your ass through before I drop it on your head!” He quickly crawled under and grabbed it from the other side. 

“Okay, got it.” She let go and climbed under.

“Thanks.” He quickly dropped the tree and caught his breath. “You need a break after that old man?” Torres laughed.

“Come on,” He sighed. “I’m not that old…” What was it with everyone calling him old? They continued into the cave in front of them. “So you’re telling me Kidman had a plan to take out Mobius all this time?”

“Actually, it was your wife’s plan.”

“Wait,  _ Myra? _ ” Sebastian turned his flashlight on. “So that’s why she’s here… she’s part of Mobius… This is ridiculous.” They walked up to a small part of the cave.

“Gonna have to duck. Don’t blow your back out.” They both crouched.

“This isn’t the time, Torres.” Sebastian grumbled.

“You know, you should be proud of your wife. She’s compelling.” Torres told him. “She recruited me for this plan.”

“I don’t understand. Why would she join them?” They got out of the small part of the cave and stood.

“She found out they had Lily.” Torres explained. “And knew that the only way to take them down, was from the inside. So she joined up and waited for the right moment.”

“All these years, that’s where she was… Dammit… This is a lot to take in.”

“I’m sure it is. But let’s not lose focus.” Torres reminded him as they got to a small wall in the cave. “We gotta get over this. Can you help me?”

“Yeah, of course.” She backed up and Sebastian crouched next to the wall, holding his hands together to be a step. “Ready?” She put her rifle on her back and ran forward. She stepped on his hands and Sebastian hoisted her up. Torres grabbed onto the ledge and struggled a bit to get up. “Hold on, I’ve got you…” Sebastian stood under her in case she fell. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” She climbed the rest of the way up and walked out of view.

“Hey! You just gonna forget about me?”

“What?” She came back and crouched next to the edge, holding out her hand for him to take. “You thought I’d leave you hanging like that?” Sebastian jumped up and grabbed her hand, she struggled a little, but pulled him up. “You’re part of The Plan now...”

“The Plan. Right. Who else was involved in this little mutiny?” Sebastian asked as they kept walking.

“Just four of us: Me, Kidman, Myra and Theodore.”

“Theodore?  _ Father Theodore _ ?”

““Father Theodore”? I just call him Theodore Wallace. You know him?”

“We’ve met. But he doesn’t want to save Lily.” They exited the cave, finding themselves in the forest yet again. “He wants her for himself. Tried to talk me into hunting down Myra, too. He’s the one who screwed everything up. How was this whole thing supposed to go?”

“Once Myra and Theodore got Lily, Theodore and I were gonna get her out while Myra stayed behind to take care of Mobius. Kidman stayed outside to make sure we got out of STEM safely… Shit. It was supposed to be easy… ” Torres shook her head, pulling her gun back off of her back.

“Nothing’s ever easy…” Sebastian mumbled. 

An explosion rang through the forest, birds flying away from the area in front of them.

“Oh no…” Torres ran ahead. They passed a hill to see a large cloud of smoke.

“What is it?”

“Shhh… Shit. We got trouble. Look.” Torres crouched behind a rock and gestured for Sebastian to do the same. In front of them were a few broken down cars and a burning building. The door of the building crashed down, out walked a man with a flamethrower and what appeared to be a gas mask melded to his face. He wore robes like some sort of priest. He had to be one of Theodore’s men. And he didn’t hesitate in burning everything around as some fire beings walked out from behind him.

“So much for your safe house.” Sebastian whispered.

“I wouldn’t put my safe house out in the open like that.” Torres seemed offended. “It’s hidden. But we’ve gotta get passed those things to get there. You see that red banner behind that building?” 

“Yeah.” Sebastian said once he saw a scrap of red fabric on tree branch in the distance.

“The hatch to my safe house is under it.”

“Okay, I’ll take the lead. Stay low and keep behind me.” Sebastian told her.

“Alright. But listen, I’ve seen these things before. Don’t get near them while they’re on fire.” Sebastian rolled his eyes. Like he needed to be told that.

Using the cars and debris of the burned structures around them they were able to get by. They reached the tree with the banner and Sebastian lifted the hatch. Torres jumped in and he quickly followed, not wanting to take the risk of being seen. They started down some stairs.

“There’s no place like home... But a safe house runs a close second.” Torres joked. “Listen, don’t freak out about the amount of explosives I’ve got in here… They’re as safe as cookie dough. At least, until I arm ‘em.” They walked in and the room was filled with explosives. Sebastian tried not to react to it, but he could admit it made him uneasy. Torres set down her gun. “So, what are we gonna do about Theodore?” She crossed her arms.

“I don’t know. He’s insane.” Not that Sebastian hadn’t dealt with insane people before, but this one was different. “His hideout looks like an inquisitor’s dream home. I should be relieved that Myra has Lily instead of him, but…”

“What? Myra has Lily?” Torres was surprised.

“Yeah. But I’m not sure that’s good news.” Sebastian sighed. “She’s… changed. This place seems to have affected her. She’s hiding, trying to protect Lily from Theodore. And he’ll tear this place apart to find them. If I can stop him… Maybe Myra will come to her senses and we can get Lily out of here.”

“So the plan is to take out Theodore?” Torres suggested.

“Yeah. But I have to find him first.” Sebastian shook his head.

“How’re you gonna do that?”

“O’Neal helped me before. I’ll call him. Worse comes to worst, there’s a guy that worked for him that may be able to help me. But he’s not exactly on our list of allies.” Sebastian grumbled. Stefano was definitely a last resort, but he may have some valuable information.

“Wait, what? Who? And how?”

“It’s a really long story. Anyway, I better give Kidman an update.”

“Right… Just be careful what you say over that thing. She’s probably in the control room with that  _ lizard _ hovering over her.” Torres reminded him. Sebastian nodded and dialed the number.

“Sebastian? Where have you been? Did you find Stefano?” Kidman sounded worried.

“I did more than that. I don’t think he’ll be a threat anymore.”

“Good. And Lily?” Sebastian sighed.

“She slipped through my fingers again.” He could hear Kidman sigh.

“Sorry to hear that. Any leads?”

“The good news is that I’ve been in contact with Agent Torres. Her… intel… has been invaluable.”

“That is good news.” Kidman paused. “...So what’s the bad news?”

“The bad news is there’s someone more powerful than Stefano who wants to take this place over. And he needs Lily to do that. Torres told me you know him, too. He’s a real smooth talker…”

“Damn. I think I know who you’re talking about… I’ll send some stuff to your Room that might help. Keep me posted. You know I’m here for you…”

“I know. I trust you, Kidman.”  It meant a lot that he said that. Sebastian hadn’t trusted Kidman since before Beacon. She had finally gained it back. The communicator clicked off.

“So who’s Stefano?” Torres asked.

“The guy I told you about. I’m still not sure we can trust him, but he  _ did _ work for Theodore.” Sebastian explained.

“So what’s the story there?”

“It’s a long one. Let me try to call O’Neal first.” He dialed the number. “O’Neal. It’s Sebastian. Come in.” Static. “Damn.” Sebastian hung up and put the communicator back on his belt. 

“Story time?” 

“Pull up a chair, Torres. This will take a while.” Sebastian grabbed a chair for himself, as Torres did the same. “So, when I first got to Union….”


	14. Plan B

You woke to the sound of crying and… was that…  _ singing _ ? Was  _ Stefano _ singing? You opened your eyes and groggily looked towards the sound. Stefano was pacing and rocking the baby in his arms as he sang in Italian. It was quite beautiful actually. Maybe he should have tried to be a singer instead of an artist? You smiled. 

After a minute or so the baby quieted down, but Stefano kept singing and rocking her. You were surprised that it was even possible for him to be so nurturing. Maybe it was because she was technically one of his “masterpieces?” Yeah, that had to be it. You remembered how he used to dote on Obscura and Guardian. It was disgusting. But this was actually sweet. Stefano turned and finally noticed you were awake. He stopped singing, his face turning a little red. 

“It was nice.” You told him.

“Hm.” He looked back at your daughter and smiled a little. You looked around the room.

“Where’s Hoffman?”

“She got a call and left.” Stefano sat in a chair next to you.

“Sebastian?” You asked. You couldn’t think of who else would have called her, and you were really hoping Sebastian was okay.

“No. Someone named Liam.” You thought for a minute. O’Neal? You had forgotten that Hoffman called him Liam. Why would he be calling her?

“Do you know what it was about?”

“Something about meeting in a restricted section. Not that restrictions really mean anything here anymore.” Stefano told you. You supposed he had a point. But this was weird. O’Neal going to a restricted section? Unless that section was in his safe house, it didn’t sound like something he would do. Stefano saying your name snapped you out of your thoughts.

“What?” 

“Look!” He was talking quieter, staring at the baby. You sat up and looked at her. And to your surprise, she was looking back at you. Big, grey eyes groggily looked between you and Stefano.

“Hey, cutie.” You smiled, reaching to take her. Stefano reluctantly handed her over.

“Rozalia.” He whispered.

“What?”

“Rozalia Agnella Angeline Valentini.” He told you, staring into her grey eyes. Oh, a name. 

“What does it mean?” You asked. You knew that everything he did had meaning. Especially something like picking a name for his first child.

“Rozalia means rose. She is a flower. Beautiful, but fragile. Agnella means pure, which I hope she will remain. Angeline means angel, and she is mine.” Stefano took off his glove(you think that may have been the first time you had seen him do that) and brushed the back of his fingers against her cheek. 

“I like it.” You told him, smiling. When you thought about it, it was almost as if Stefano was a completely different person. You had grown to stop fearing him as much over your time away from him. But you weren’t really afraid of him at all now. He was harmless. You hoped.

“I should see if I can find anything for her in the town.” He looked up at you. You were surprised that he would offer to do such a thing. But then again he would, probably, go out of his way to make things better for 'his art.’ “Would you be safe by yourself?” You rolled your eyes.

“I survived without you before, I’m  _ sure _ I can do it again.” Not like you really liked the idea of sitting and doing nothing, but at least Rozalia would keep you company. Stefano nodded and put his glove back on. He kissed Rozalia’s forehead and teleported away. You were surprised he had the energy, but maybe he had just enough for a little bit of teleportation? You looked back to Rozalia, she had fallen asleep again. You gently laid her on the ground next to you, still wrapped up in her towels and blanket. You decided this would probably be a good time to clean up a little more and get dressed, even if your body complained to you about the movement.

 

~*~*~*~

 

“...And now I would probably assume she’s had her baby and they’re okay. But  _ here _ , you never know.” Sebastian finished explaining. Torres nodded. 

“I guess you’re right. That was a long story.” She laughed. “I’d guess that we could probably get some good intel on Theodore from Stefano. Considering you didn’t actually kill him and you saved his girlfriend.” 

“But I also almost killed him and shot Y/N.” Sebastian pointed out.

“But neither one died. So I’d say you’re good.” Torres told him.

“Maybe.” Sebastian sighed. “Well, I better get going. I guess if I meet up with them again I can see what he knows.” Sebastian stood. “Is there a way into the Marrow from here?”

“Yeah. There’s a Mobius computer in the next room. It’ll take you to exit 72.”

“Great. You should stay here and get your explosives and weapons ready. I’ll need your help once I locate Theodore. I’ll call you when I’m ready. Hang tough, Torres.”

“Got it.” Torres nodded. “Good luck, Sebastian.” He headed towards the port, typing in the familiar code. 

 

The second Sebastian had entered the Marrow, the smell of blood and candle smoke hit him. He crept around a corner to see burnt corpses (dead before they were burned he hoped), pools of blood, and candles. Not to mention the burnt walls.

“Shit. Looks like Theodore’s already been here.” He sighed. “Maybe that’s why I couldn’t contact O’Neal…” He pulled out his gun, checking to make sure that it was loaded. “Hoffman’s Safe House is nearby. I should see if I can check up on her and Y/N.” He quickly made his way to Hoffman’s safe house. Not encountering a single lost. He guessed he had Theodore to thank for that. 

“Hoffman?” No response. It was empty. Okay, maybe she’s still in the one by the theater. Sebastian found his way to the exit D5 computer and typed in the code. 

 

~*~*~*~

 

You had just finished getting dressed when Sebastian appeared by the computer. You smiled.

“Boy, am I glad to see you!” You laughed. He turned towards you and gave you a small smile.

“Glad to see you’re okay, Y/N.” He looked around. “Where’s everyone else?” You sat on the floor where you had been laying before. 

“Stefano left to find some supplies. And he said that Hoffman left because O’Neal called. Oh, and there’s someone else you should meet.” You picked up Rozalia. Who scrunched up her face, looking like she might cry again, but she stayed quiet and went back to sleep. Sebastian crouched next to you. 

“So, who’s this?” Sebastian smiled. You could tell he had a soft spot for babies. Even if this one’s parents were a murderous psychopath and a lying traitor. You handed him Rozalia.

“Rozalia Agnella Angeline Valentini.” Sebastian looked up at you.

“Let me guess…”

“Stefano picked the name.” You both said it in unison.

“Yeah, seemed a bit extravagant.” He looked back at Rozalia. 

“Yeah. I think I’ll probably call her Rozi most of the time.” 

“She’s cute, I’ll give her that.” He looked back up at you. “So you said O’Neal called Hoffman?”

“Yeah, I was asleep. But Stefano says he was asking her to meet him somewhere restricted. I’d assume in the Marrow.” You explained.

“O’Neal? Leaving his safe house?”

“I know. It doesn’t make sense.” Sebastian handed Rozalia back to you and stood.

“I better check it out. This could be bad.” He went back over to the computer.

“Wait, why? The threats gone.” It was then you finally noticed he didn’t have Lily. “Oh my God. Where’s Lily?”

“It’s a long story. And I don’t have time to explain it. Ask Stefano about Father Theodore when he gets back. We could use all the information he has.” Sebastian explained before typing in the code and disappearing.

“Father Theodore…” You repeated the name to yourself. Wait… of course! The preacher! Father Theodore! “Damn.” You should’ve guessed that the second Stefano wasn’t a threat anymore he would have come out of the woodwork. If he had Lily, who knew what was going to happen. Not to mention what he would probably do to that poor girl. “Wait…” You thought aloud. “What’s going to happen to Stefano for failing his task?” You reflexively tightened your grip on Rozalia.

“Is something wron-” You jumped, standing and hitting the person behind you. You turned to look, it was Stefano.

“You can’t just show up and not announce yourself anymore!” You yelled. He glared at you. Rozalia started to cry. “Oh no, honey, it’s okay…” You started to try and calm her.

“I was only checking on  _ you _ !” Stefano whisper yelled.

“Well how was I supposed to know it was you! It could’ve been a lost or- or… Theodore!” You whisper yelled back, still rocking your daughter. She was calming down now. Stefano suddenly had a face that you had never seen before. Fear. He closed his eyes and furrowed his brow. 

“Yes. Union is already full of his  _ henchmen _ . I am lucky that I can still transport myself.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. Stefano began pacing and grumbling to himself in Italian. You nervously waited for him to get his thoughts together enough to translate for you. He stopped pacing and turned to you, grabbing your shoulders. “We are not safe here.”

“Okay, so we hide in your domai-”

“It is gone.” You didn’t appreciate him cutting you off, but this was too serious for you to care too much.

“So we have Guardian protec-”

“She is gone.” You could hear a hint of anguish in his voice.

“Obscura?” You nervously asked.

“ _ Gone. _ The Father gifted me with this ability here. When I was dying I could only maintain so much. And now that I no longer work for him-”

“You can’t bring anything back.” Had he not been freaking out, he would have been angry you cut him off.

“ _ Precisely _ .” 

“He’s going to find us. No matter where we go?” You had to make sure you were hearing this right.

“Exactly.”  _ FUCK. _ It took everything in your power not to say it out loud. Considering you  _ did _ have a baby in your arms who really shouldn’t be hearing such things.

“We have to get out of STEM. As soon as possible.” You told him. “We’ll help Sebastian defeat Theodore and get to Lily.” Stefano was quiet for a moment, thinking.

“He’s going to kill me the second he has the chance. Y/N, he’ll kill you. He  _ will _ kill R-” He cut himself off. No. He wasn’t going to let this happen. He was the one who messed up. And he would fix this. For you. For Rozalia. No matter what it took.

* * *

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	15. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Sebastian, and Stefano look back on things that led you to this point.

The pristine white doors opened in front of Sebastian. Large tanks full of green liquid filled the room. Each one with a lost inside. 

“All these tanks… What’s this about?” At the other end of the room were some tables, each with a body bag. If he had to guess, there was a lost in each one those too. So obviously they were studying the lost… but what for? The next dark room had more tanks and curtains dividing it into sections, like a hospital. Sebastian walked further into the room, a pulse of light going through him. In front of him stood an apparition of Hoffman. A residual memory. 

“What were they doing in this lab?” She asked, looking around. “And why did Liam want me to meet him here?” She walked forward and stopped at the large door.

“Unity cerebral chip detected.” A robotic voice said. “Entry authorized.” The door opened and Hoffman went through. The room fell dark again.

“Hmm. Can’t pass through without one of those chips…” Sebastian mumbled, starting to look behind the curtains. “Gotta be one around here somewhere…” He started to hear groaning in the room. Great. One of these disasters of a person woke up. Sebastian crept towards the noise, if he was lucky he’d be able to kill it without using and bullets. He turned the corner. The creature was ripping into a corpse and eating it. If Sebastian had had any appetite before, he just lost it. At least it was distracted, so he was able to simply grab it and stab it in the back of the head. He could hear more groaning. Why did these things suddenly have to wake up when he got here? 

Sebastian continued up the stairs and into the first door. Another small lab, abandoned(of course) with anatomical drawings on the wall. It reminded him of exploring Ruvik’s mansion. He shivered at the thought. His communicator beeped at finding a signal and Sebastian tuned in, happy to distract himself from memories of Beacon. It was one of the Mobius researchers. She was talking about the people turning into lost. Everyone dying. She said the whole town would succumb in two weeks.

“This must’ve been around when they sent in the tech team.” Sebastian mumbled. “And when Stefano found Y/N. The whole thing probably got worse faster than in two weeks…” Sebastian picked up the supplies in the room and left. The groaning in the hall getting louder. He could see a larger lost further down the hall, but if he was lucky he wouldn’t have to go anywhere near it. He continued onto the next room. A dark room that seemed to be functioning as some kind of morgue or containment room for ‘test subjects.’He went to the other end of the room and pushed open the door.

“What do we have here…” Sebastian whispered. It looked like some sort of examination room with a normal man on the table. He was dead, but he wasn’t a lost. Various robotic arms surrounded his head. As if someone was in the middle of performing an operation and was stopped short. Sebastian walked over to the computer and read over the file. It explained that the man on the table was a terminated Mobius operative. They were working on harvesting his chip to see if they could get any new data about why even Mobius operatives were changing into lost. Underneath was a brief explanation of the extraction process.

“If they haven’t removed this guy’s chip yet, I can use it to get through that door and find Hoffman…” Sebastian went over to the operation table and typed in the code given on the document. The numbers lit up green and the drill next to the man’s head started up. Sebastian turned away as the drill cut into the man. Crunching noises joined the buzzing, and after a minute the drill shut off and the robotic arm pulled it out of the man’s skull. The cerebral chip stuck to the end of the drill. 

“Ugh. Thank God he’s already dead…” Sebastian grumbled looking at the pool of blood next to the man’s head as he grabbed the chip. “I gotta get out of this lab…” He turned to the door and the lights shut off. Banging filled the area around him, as the emergency lights flickered on, filling the room with a faint red glow. Sebastian crept back into the morgue-like room. Most of the tables were now empty and the other door was ripped off of its hinges. Great. 

He looked over the guardrail outside of the room. The lower level was full of lost, even one of the tall, moany abominations. Wonderful. Sebastian made his way back to the stairs, stealth killing any lost in his way. There were only a few so it wasn’t too difficult. But he wasn’t particularly looking forward to the mess downstairs. He made it down safely and crept up to an electronically locked door. 

“Dammit.” He pulled out his crossbow and a shockbolt. Good thing he hadn’t used them all on Stefano. He shot the control panel next to the door and it opened. He quickly snuck into the room, hoping none of the lost heard him. 

Laying on the ground lining the walls were more bodies under cloths. “Are these Union citizens? What was mobius doing with them?” He asked aloud, peeking under the sheets. Sebastian made his way down a long corridor lined with  _ more _ bodies, trash bags, and puddles of blood. That’s not ominous  _ at all. _

At the end of the hall was what looked to be a mining cart with some more corpses. The track the cart was on led to a drop off. He walked up and shined his flashlight into the chasm.

“Looks like it goes on forever…” What the hell was this place? Sebastian’s communicator beeped. He ignored it and went into the side room. Some sort of observation deck? He read over the open file on the computer. Some kind of log from the person watching over this area, which was apparently called “The Pit.” It seemed like the man was experiencing weird things and was just trying to play it off as a symptom of solitude. Not “The Lost Phenomenon.” If Sebastian had to guess, the guy was probably dead. Suddenly the area around Sebastian grew cold. He could see his breath. He heard a sort of giggling and a woman’s voice playfully calling for him. 

“Oh no. It’s coming.” Sebastian whispered. “It” being the tall, singing woman who he had encountered a couple of times, only when he wasn’t with Y/N. Whenever he was with this woman, he was transported back to Beacon and given flashbacks of the nightmare that it was. Something he really didn’t want to experience again. “I gotta get out of here…” Sebastian made his way back down the long corridor. Moving as quickly as he could both in an attempt to stay warm and to get away from that  _ thing _ . The gate quickly shut in front of him. He backed away, pulling out his handgun.

“Sebastian…” The woman sung playfully. Sebastian turned around to see her crawling towards him, her dress flowing behind her.

“No…” He backed up, aiming his gun. She moved a lot faster to get close to him and stood. The woman had to be at least a foot taller than Sebastian. She screamed and he was thrown back into the wall, everything going black around him.

 

~*~*~*~

 

You were dressing Rozi in a diaper and a onesie that Stefano had found. It was a little big on her, but when you really thought about it, she was a tiny baby. Not too tiny, but not exactly normal size. Oh well, you loved her anyway. It didn’t matter to you how big or small she was. 

Normally, in times like this you’d expect to be annoyed by the constant clicking of a camera. But, Stefano had fallen asleep in a chair nearby. You couldn’t blame him. The man hardly ever slept, and probably hadn’t slept since before his fight with Sebastian. And who knows how long before that. Outwardly, it seemed like he was very capable of running on only a few hours of sleep at a time, but you knew he’d been sneaking cups of coffee every now and then. 

You glanced over at Stefano. He looked peaceful when he was sleeping. When he was sleeping, you couldn’t tell that he had the blood of probably hundreds of innocent people on his hands. 

You sighed as you finished dressing Rozalia. How did you end up in this mess? First mistake, joining a cult. Okay, so life wasn’t going the greatest for you in Krimson City and you wanted to get away from it all. But you probably shouldn’t have joined a cult. Second mistake, when things started going downhill in Union and a smooth-talking Italian offered you safety, you took it. You probably should have taken the missing eye and blood on his suit as warnings. Third mistake, staying with him long enough for him to start caring about you. Fourth mistake, sleeping with him. Fifth mistake, doing it more than once. (You weren’t going to include each time as an individual mistake, your list would be  _ way _ too long.) Sixth mistake, falling for him. Even when you knew all of the things he’d done. Seventh mistake, making friends with his enemy. Eighth mistake, saving him and getting yourself shot. Ninth mistake, having his baby. And you were sure that a tenth mistake wouldn’t be too far behind.

So, you’d made a lot of mistakes. Okay. But some of them weren’t so much mistakes as “happy accidents.” Well, that’s what  _ you _ considered them. Someone else, like Sebastian for example, would still consider them mistakes. Maybe even more than mistakes. More like fuck-ups. But oh well, what was done was done. There wasn’t really anything you could do to change it. At some point in this nightmare you had fallen for this psychopath of an artist, and you had his and your child in your arms to prove it.

Stefano stirred in his sleep. You looked over at him to see he had a pained expression. Was he having a nightmare? You wondered if you should wake him, but you didn’t have to think about it for long. He suddenly shot up, almost falling out of his chair, eye wide open. He was breathing heavily and staring forward as if he saw something you couldn’t. He lightly touched the bad side of his face, still bandaged from before. He seemed like he was in some kind of trance. You protectively held onto Rozi, not knowing if you should try to say something. Stefano winced and sighed, sitting back in the chair.

“You okay..?” You asked cautiously. He lazily opened his eye and looked over at you. He touched his damaged face again.

“It still aches sometimes.” He quietly laughed to himself. “A good reminder of the  _ beauty _ of life and suffering.” You sighed.

“You scared me.”

“It was only a bad dream,  _ amore _ . I’m not a  _ child  _ who needs to be consoled.” He gave you a small smile. It was obvious Stefano didn’t want to talk anymore about his dream. Not surprising. Being afraid was a sign of weakness, and he never wanted to show anyone that side of himself. 

“You don’t sleep much. Is it because of your nightmares?” You asked. He narrowed his eye. Annoyed that you hadn’t dropped the subject.

“Yes and no.” He sighed. “When you are someone as  _ creative _ as I, your never-ending thoughts don’t allow you such  _ luxuries _ as sleep.” You rolled your eyes.

“Okay. Sure. But what does someone so unphased by death and monsters, such as the great  _ Stefano Valentini _ , have nightmares about anyway?” You were half joking, but you were also very over his whole ‘no one can know anything about me except my art’ act. And it was very clear he was getting irritated with you as well.

“ _ Unfortunately _ ,” Stefano leaned in so that his face was slightly closer to yours. “I have things, such as the beautiful  _ Y/N L/N _ , that I care about  _ losing _ .” Ouch. You knew he was referencing to your having run away. Well, if his plan was to get you to stop prying, it worked. Granted, you could tell there was more he wasn’t telling you, but you weren’t going to push anymore. Although, you sure as hell weren’t going to apologize. For running away, or for asking questions. 

 

Stefano was a little sorry that he was blaming you for things. He knew you’d been through a lot recently. (Mainly because of him.) But he wasn’t going to apologize. Because in the end it worked out. Right? He gifted you with something that no one else did. Rozalia. And he didn’t even ask for you to thank him. 

Stefano sighed.  _ Maybe _ he was being a  _ bit _ ridiculous. But there were some things he just didn’t want to talk about, and you should have respected that. No, his dream wasn’t about you. But he didn’t want to bother you with the past. And he still wasn’t ready to really acknowledge that he had nightmares about the war. About the explosion. About losing his eye. No, he told everyone it was a good thing that it had happened. (Which, in a way, it was.) And he would continue to tell everyone that. Including you.

 

Rozalia moved a little in your arms, cooing softly. You smiled down at her. Ah yes, the  _ main _ reason you still put up with this conceited photographer. She stared back up at you. Since first opening her eyes, she did this a lot more often. Blank stares that seemed to be prying into your soul, or curiously looking around the room. Not that there was too much to look at. You were still stuck in this safe house. But it didn’t matter to her. For the most part, your little flower was content. There was a camera flash, instantly you turned and gave Stefano a look. He returned one just as cold. 

“Okay, whatever.” You sighed, looking back at your daughter. Rozi blinked a few times, having not liked the bright flash of light. She moved her little hands around. Sort of like she wanted to rub her eyes, but was just kinda touching her face instead. You and Stefano sat in silence, just watching her. How could something so small, so innocent, exist in this hell? Rozalia was your ray of hope that everything would be alright. That Lily would be found. That Theodore would be defeated. That all of you would make it out safely. 

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian stood as a large room formed around him. The ghost-like woman floated in the open space in the middle of the room. He quickly ducked behind the nearest object.

“That thing again…” Sebastian whispered. The woman moaned and lifted all of the objects in the area into the air, slamming them back down a second later. She started to sing her familiar tune. Why was it so familiar? Whatever. He would think over music later. Right now, Sebastian had to get out of here. Upon seeing the other way was blocked by some broken columns, he crept to the right. When he turned the corner, the woman moaned again, throwing the broken pieces of column in front of him. He fell back. “Shit… Guess I’ll go the other way.” He crept past her again, praying that she wouldn’t turn around. He stealthily made his way down the staircase at the end of the path. He heard the woman giggling, and quickly turned the corner. He could now see the middle of the room that she had been floating above. In the middle was a man laying on a table. He wore a nice vest and gun holsters. Was that… no. It couldn’t be.

The woman floated down so that she was in front of him. The table with the man floated into the air, then shot through the doors behind her. She raised her arms and everything in the room lifted into the air as well. The woman threw everything down around her as she landed, giggling and resuming her singing. The hall behind her lit up red. That was where he needed to go. He just had to get passed this bitch, who was periodically lifting every other item and slamming it back down a second later. She certainly wasn’t making it easy to hide. Sebastian started to maneuver through the room. Every now and then the woman would moan again, and the obstacles would be shifted around, causing him to need to find another path. 

“Dammit…” Sebastian whispered as his path was blocked yet again.

“Sebastian…” She eerily sung as she slammed everything down in a different arrangement. Fortunately, that opened up his path and he had a straight shot for the doors. He gunned it, kicking open the doors and running down the hall.

“That thing again… Why is it after me? What does it have to do with this place?” He asked no one in particular. He slowed down, noticing that it wasn’t following him. Sebastian made his way through the next set of hospital doors. The place was in shambles. Wheelchairs and empty gurneys littered the abandoned halls. Just. Like. Beacon. 

Sebastian picked up a file he found. It was written by the police chief, Jim. He was writing to Mobius, talking about sending Sebastian to mandatory counseling to convince him that Beacon wasn’t real. He talked about Sebastian becoming like a zombie. But justified it as something that needed to be done for Mobius. 

“Kidman was right.” Sebastian shook his head. “They’re everywhere. They were right under my nose the entire time…” He picked up another file. This one was torn in half, so he could only read the end of it. Some official bullshit, written by his psychologist, about how he was experiencing residual effects from STEM. “Damn… Mobius were using me as their guinea pig. “Long-lasting residual effects”? They knew STEM would scar me like this…” Sebastian made his way out of the side room he was in and back down the main hall towards a faint red light. “A way out?” He continued through the doorway and started down some stairs. A projection like image started up next to him on the wall. Flashbacks from Beacon. Leslie. The Haunted. Ruvik. Another projection started on the other side of the stairs. Beacon’s front sign. A brain. Faint whispering could be heard, as more projections appeared around him. Leslie again. Kidman. What was this..? At the end of the staircase was a small door. Sebastian cautiously opened it.

“Trapped. Can’t get out…” It was his own voice. But he wasn’t speaking. In front of him lay the man on the table that had floated behind the ghost woman. On the walls behind that were more projections from Beacon. Ruvik. Jimenez. Kidman.  “Still here. Can’t leave. Nothing changes…” The man on the table groaned. That was why he had seemed familiar. It was Sebastian. From back then. From  _ Beacon _ . “My fault…” Sebastian slowly walked closer to the past version of himself. “It’s all my fault…” 

“What the hell is this…?” He asked as he reached the edge of the table.

“Can’t move on…” His past self turned to look at him. “Can’t… Move…” Suddenly Sebastian felt a familiar pain pierce through his skull. He grabbed his head as memories from Beacon flooded his mind. The monsters. Windows shattering in front of him. The church. He groaned as the images faded.

“The source of my pain…” He realized. “Is me. The part of me still stuck in STEM.” 

“Never getting out…” His past self took labored breaths as he closed his eyes. 

“No. I’m wrong.” Sebastian drew his handgun. “I will get out.” He placed the barrel next to his past self’s head. “But without you…” He pulled the trigger.

* * *

 

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	16. Followers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian catches up with O'Neal and Hoffman.

The white light faded around Sebastian and he found himself back in the observation room above “the pit.”

“What was that?” He asked himself. “It felt different than the others. More real… Like something changed… I feel...good.” he looked down to see that it wasn't his handgun in his hand, but his revolver. “Huh. My trusty revolver. Haven't seen you in a long time…” He put it in one of the many holsters he was wearing and grabbed the projector slide that was on the desk in front of him. 

Sebastian made his way back down the hall lined with bodies and trashbags(still very ominous). He was greeted with the moans and groans of one of the tall lost like creatures. Or whatever it was. Not that it mattered, it'd be dead soon. The door he had gone through was partially closed, so he could see it, but it couldn't see him. He shot it a couple times and it went down for the count. Sebastian crawled under the gate and made his way to the exit he had seen Hoffman go through.

“Scanning for Unity Cerebral Chip. Please wait…” The automated voice told him. “Unity Cerebral Chip detected. Entry authorized.” The huge door swung open.

“About time. Hope I can still catch up with Hoffman and O'Neal…” Sebastian whispered as he walked through. He hopped over some gurneys that blocked his path and went on through the next door. The next room was large and dark. Divided by various curtains and shelves. Part of it obviously functioned some sort of science lab, with the “experiments” still on the tables. He could hear talking. “Huh. Voices…” Was that them? Sebastian found a door with lit candles outside of it. That was never a good sign. He went to open it.

“No!” Sebastian paused. Hoffman? He leaned in close to the door to hear better. “... Please stop! Don't let him control you!” Sebastian pulled away. What was happening?

“Just listen…” It was a deep voice. Unfamiliar, but familiar at the same time. “Listen… His voice will tell you…” Sebastian stood to the side of the door. Quickly he pulled the handle and aimed his gun into the room as the door opened.

“You’ve got to resist him!” Hoffman yelled. She was yelling at one of Theodore's men with the gas mask melded to his face.

“Hoffman!” Sebastian yelled, she turned to look at him. “Stand back!” Sebastian aimed his gun and Hoffman jumped between him and Theodore's henchman.

“No!” She cried. “He doesn't know what he's doing!” The man grabbed her by the shoulder and shoved her back, knocking her to the ground behind him. He ran forward and Sebastian fired. The man was unphased by the bullet and kept going. Sebastian ducked out of the way as the man tried to burn him with his flamethrower. He aimed again and the man did the same. Hoffman ran out and grabbed on to the man’s arm.

“Liam! Don't!” She yelled.

“What do you mean, 'Liam’?” Sebastian lowered his gun a little.

“Stay back!” The man pushed Hoffman back into the side room and set a barrier of flames between them. He looked towards Sebastian. He paused and grasped his mask, pulling it off of his face along with what looked to be some skin. Sebastian's eyes widened as he lowered his gun.

“Stay out of my way, Sebastian!” The voice had gone back to its normal tone. It was O’Neal. His face and head were horribly burned, one eye was damaged, and his glasses were gone. But it was him.

“O’Neal… What happened?” Sebastian aimed his gun again.

“Theodore showed me the way. I am His now.” He smiled. “I helped Him hide. And in exchange, He gave me a new life.” O’Neal began to walk forward. With every step he advanced, Sebastian stepped back.

“A life as a slave…” Sebastian told him. O’Neal raised and lowered his eyebrows, almost as if he was amused.

“You’ll never understand… For that, you’ll  _ burn _ !” He turned on his flamethrower, and Sebastian was just barely able to jump out of the way. He quickly stomped out a small flame on his pant leg and ran around one of the shelves. “You’ll never escape me!” Sebastian ran until he found the nearest fire extinguisher.

“Getting too hot in here…Gotta put the flames out.” he pulled the lever and the sprinklers started up.

“You won't get out of here.” O’Neal told him from around the corner. “He demands I take care of you… You can either die… or change, like me…” 

It was becoming obvious that Sebastian wouldn't be able to save him. Theodore's influence was too strong. Dammit. He ducked around another corner so that he could see O’Neal and shot him. Once again he seemed almost completely unphased.

“Argh! Damn you, Sebastian!” O’Neal shot a fireball at him and Sebastian jumped out of the way. O’Neal ran forward and swiped at Sebastian with the sword-like spout of the flamethrower. “You must be cleansed!” Sebastian aimed and fired again, getting O’Neal in the chest. He quickly ran behind some more shelves. 

“Yes, Father Theodore, I told him…” When O’Neal started to get close again Sebastian ran behind another shelf. “Stop running! I’m sorry, Master. I won’t let him get away. I promise.” Sebastian jumped out from behind the shelf and fired again, getting O’Neal a couple of times in the chest. He was slowing down, but not by much. O’Neal pulled off his mask. 

“That’s it. I’m done playing with you!” He burned all of the surrounding area and charged at Sebastian, who ducked out of the way and fired again. He ran and found cover. “You think you’re too good to fight me? I’m not weak anymore. I won't go down easy.” Sebastian ran and found another fire extinguisher and pulled the lever, turning the sprinklers back on.

“Shit. Is he ever going down?” He found O’Neal and fired again. He stumbled, but didn’t fall. Sebastian fired a couple more times. O’Neal finally fell back. 

“Ahhh….” He made his way over to a wall and sat so he was leaning against it, coughing. Sebastian put out the flames blocking Hoffman’s path and they both went over to O’Neal, crouching beside him. “T-Thank you, S-Sebastian…” His every breath was a challenge. “F-Finally….Free. From his voice.” Hoffman was holding back her tears and Sebastian sat in silence taking in each one of O’Neal’s words. “From my fears…” O’Neal sighed. “I was so scared. You gotta stop him.”

“I can’t stop him if I can’t find him, O’Neal.” Sebastian told him. 

“He phase-shifted… He’s not here. Not anywhere…” O’Neal whispered. He looked towards the door Hoffman had come from. “The machine in the room next door… You’ve got to destroy it…” Sebastian could tell it was taking his every breath to say this. 

“What machine?” Sebastian leaned in. O’Neal looked down, ashamed.

“He made me build it. To hide him. Destroy it…” He took a breath. “So that you can destroy him…” O’Neal took one last deep breath and fell forward. 

He was gone. 

Hoffman wiped off her cheeks as the tears kept coming. Come on. She was used to this. She had to get over it. Sebastian closed O’Neal’s eyes and the two stood. They were silent for a couple minutes, the only sound in the room being the quiet sniffling of Hoffman. She may have used to people getting killed, but it hurt so much more this time.

“What happened?” Sebastian asked. “How did O’Neal get turned into that thing?” 

“I don’t know.” Hoffman shook her head, wiping her face. She was done crying for now. “I’ve been locked in the Safe House with Y/N and Stefano since you left. When Liam called and asked me to meet him I was so relieved to hear his voice… But he wasn’t Liam.” She shook her head again, her voice shaking a little. “He was that… thing.” She sighed. “I tried to get through to him, but… You heard him. Theodore Wallace did something to him.”

“Poor guy.” Sebastian shook his head. “I didn’t want to have to kill him…”

“You didn’t have a choice. Theodore wasn’t going to give him up…” Hoffman looked up at Sebastian after glancing back at Liam. “So what now?”

“Let’s take a look at this machine O’Neal was talking about…” 

“I think it’s on the other side of the room where you found us. Let’s go…”

 

~*~*~*~

 

           “You can't escape me.” Stefano grabbed his knife as his head started to ache. It was the Father. He looked back at Y/N, sitting peacefully watching their daughter. She couldn't hear him. “You can't protect them.” Theodore told him. 

“I can.” Stefano whispered. He didn't want to alert her. 

“You have nothing. You are weak. You cannot hide anymore.” Theodore continued. “Your betrayal will be your downfall, Stefano. All you had to do was bring me the girl. And you  _ failed _ .” Stefano tightened his grip on his knife. “And you  _ will _ be punished.” He looked over at Y/N as she grabbed her head, as if she were getting a headache.

“Leave her be.” Stefano whispered. “She is not the one who-”

“Kill Sebastian.” Theodore told him. “And I will leave her. I will grant to you your old ability. You can create your art. You can live out your life here with Y/N and your daughter. Safe, in your own domain.” Stefano was silent, watching Y/N relax again as her headache faded. “All you have to do, is kill Sebastian Castellanos.” 

“Does Sebastian have the Core?” He whispered. 

“No. But once you have killed him, I will gift you with the strength needed to find her.” Theodore explained. “But once you have located her,  _ I _ will get her  _ myself _ . You are very fortunate I am being so gracious.” 

“Yes, Father Theodore.” Stefano whispered, looking down, tightening the grip on his knife again.

“Should you even think of betraying me,” Rozalia started to stir in her sleep, and Y/N picked her up as she started to cry. Stefano was losing feeling in his hand from holding his knife so tightly. “You know I can be a wrathful god.” 

“ _ Yes _ , Father.” The small pain in his head was gone. Theodore had left him. Stefano could feel the surge of energy as some of his power was given back to him.  _ Dammit _ . 

 

Stefano threw his knife at the door as hard as he could. You jumped. 

“What was that for!?” You turned and asked him, rocking the crying Rozi in your arms. 

“Target practice.” He told you as he pulled the knife out of the door. “I must practice in order to keep my skills the way they are.” 

“A little warning would be nice.” You glared at him. Rozi had calmed down at least, whatever was bothering her was gone. Maybe she had gotten a headache like yours? Which was weird though. But you didn't think too much of it, random headaches weren't  _ that _ weird. You looked back at Stefano. “Did you get a headache a second ago?” 

“Yes.” He threw his knife again. “That's common here, is it not?” He pulled the knife from the door.

“Yeah. I guess.” You felt like there was more to it, but maybe you were just overthinking it. You watched Stefano practice knife throwing for a bit. “Sebastian came by when you were gone earlier.” He paused for a second then continued his practicing.

“Oh?”

“He told me to ask you about Theodore. He left right before you came back.” You explained, laying Rozalia back down on the blanket you had turned into a bed for her.

“Where did he go?” Stefano pulled the knife from the door.

“Back into the Marrow. To look for Hoffman and O’Neal.”

“Maybe I should look for him?” Stefano suggested. You were surprised. Him? Caring about  _ Sebastian _ ?

“Hey, come here.” You told him. He looked at you funny, but complied. You gestured for him to come closer and he leaned towards you. You placed your hand on his forehead. “You feeling okay?” He pushed your hand away.

“I know what you're thinking. But due to  _ unfortunate _ circumstances, we have become  _ allies _ .” He sounded like he was going to be sick saying that word. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend,  _ si _ ?”

“I guess. But it still doesn't seem like you.”

“There is a lot you do not know about me, darling.” Stefano gave you a small smile, but something about it didn’t feel quite right.

* * *

 

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	17. The Machine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian and Hoffman find O'Neal's machine.

Sebastian solemnly picked up the broken pieces of O’Neal’s flamethrower.

“Flame thrower. I could use this, but it’s broken. If I found the right parts…” He thought as he put them in his bag. He and Hoffman continued into the next room to look for whatever machine was hiding Theodore. The room had an altar with another one of Theodore’s eye symbols. The symbols were scribbled all over the walls as well. Was this what O’Neal spent his time doing? Sebastian looked over the altar.

“Mark of influence… Theodore’s sticking his fingers in every part of this place.” He mumbled as his communicator beeped. He tuned in.

“Yes, master…” A white apparition of O’Neal appeared before them. “Of course. The machine is operating as it should…” He paused. “Ahhhh….. Thank you, Father Theodore…” He sighed. “To hear You say that… It fills me with pride…” He paused again. “What? But she is harmless to us. She’s not- No. I would never disobey. Of course I will… Whatever pleases You…” He pulled his communicator away from his head and dialed another number. He put it back up to his ear. “Yukiko… Can you hear me? I’m in the fabrication room.” His tone had dramatically shifted between the two calls. “Clearances don’t mean much when everyone’s dead. Just… Please come and meet me here. I have… something to show you. It’s important…” He hung up. “I’m sorry, Yukiko. But He demands it…” The memory faded and O’Neal’s image was gone. Hoffman shook her head.

“So Theodore wants you dead.” Sebastian mumbled.

“It appears so.” She sighed. Sebastian walked over to the workbench in the corner of the room. Parts of various machines were spread across it.

“Lots of weird stuff in here. Looks like he was building something.”

“Maybe that machine he was talking about?” Hoffman suggested. Sebastian nodded and they continued into the long hallway, lined with only candles for light.

“So you know Theodore Wallace?”

“Of course. He’s head of recruitment.” Hoffman explained. “But what’s he doing in STEM? And why is he doing this?”

“There’s a lot going on that you don’t know about.” Sebastian sighed. “Theodore wants Lily for himself. That’s why Stefano was after her. And you saw what he did to O’Neal. He’ll do that to everybody in here if he has to. He’ll tear this place apart to get his hands on her. I can’t let that happen.” They walked up to a large pair of double doors. Above them, a red sign saying “in operation.” O’Neal’s machine had to be in there. Sebastian pushed the doors open and walked in. In front of him was what looked exactly like the Stable Field Emitter he had turned on before. Surrounded by candles, of course.

“What is it?” Hoffman asked, walking to stand beside him.

“I’m not totally sure, but it looks a hell of a lot like the Stable Field Emitter.” Sebastian told her. “Whatever it is, O’Neal said to destroy it, so that’s what I’m gonna do. And I know just how…” He pulled out his communicator and dialed the number. It rang for a minute. “It’s me.”

“Sebastian. I was starting to think you forgot about me.” Torres joked over the line.

“Have you finished arming that cookie dough of yours?” He asked. Hoffman gave him a funny look.

“I have. Looking for an excuse to use it, too.”

“Good. I’m sending you my coordinates. Bring the big guns. We’re going hunting.”

“Got it! I’m already gone. See you soon!” Torres hung up.

“Cookie dough?” Hoffman asked. Sebastian put away his communicator.

“Inside joke.” He told her, crossing his arms. “Explosives.” He smiled.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Stefano had left. Even after you argued with him about staying. Guy couldn’t even get into the Marrow, so he said he had something else important to do. What could have been more important than watching over his… his… you weren’t sure what you were to him. But what about watching over _his child_? He left anyway. Bastard.

You were getting tired of everyone leaving. Sebastian. Hoffman. And now even Stefano. It wasn’t really that you were feeling abandoned, but more bored. And worried. You hadn’t been a mom for very long, but you thought your maternal instinct had to be kicking in. You hadn’t heard anything from anyone in what had to be hours, and you weren’t going to sit idly anymore, waiting for the world to crash down around you. No. You were leaving the safe house. And if you had to do it with a baby strapped to your chest, then so be it.

In the freetime you had had waiting for everyone you had turned one of the blankets Hoffman gave you into a sort of carrier for Rozi. You were worried she would cry if you put her in it(she didn’t really like to be moved around a whole lot) but she stayed asleep. She probably liked being warm and so close to you.

Stefano had told you earlier that Union was full of Theodore’s henchmen, so you figured that the Marrow would probably be a safer bet. Then you could also get your handgun back from Sebastian. If you could just remember the stupid code. You stood at the computer, ready to type. What was it again? 7-9…. No… 7-12… nope… dammit.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Torres finished wiring the part of the explosives she was working on around the machine and turned to face Sebastian.

“I’m almost ready over here. Let me know when you’re good to go…” She told him then turned back to the machine and continued. Sebastian turned to Hoffman.

“I need you to clarify some things for me, Hoffman.” He told her. “You didn’t seem so surprised to see Esmeralda here.”

“Why should I be? She’s a familiar face in STEM.” She shook her head.

“Everybody knows everybody in Mobius, huh?”

“More like _I_ know everybody.” Hoffman crossed her arms. “I’ve been in charge of new hire evaluations for years.”

“Like one big dysfunctional family…” Sebastian shook his head.

“Esmeralda’s the best person to have around in dangerous situations. She’s a good soldier.”

“You’re damn right I am!” Torres laughed.

“I assume you know Myra, too?” Sebastian asked.

“I do. We worked together closely.” Hoffman uncrossed her arms.

“How could she do this?” Sebastian shook his head. “How could she stand by while they conducted experiments on Lily? How could she tell Lily that I was dead?” Hoffman sighed and crossed her arms again.

“Myra’s maternal instinct is very strong. She joined Mobius to be closer to Lily. And the word “experiment” is a bit harsh.” She glared at him. “Lily was treated well, and she was able to interact with her mother on a daily basis.” Hoffman shook her head. “As far as telling Lily you were dead…I believe Myra only did it to protect Lily’s feelings.”

“Yeah, well,” Sebastian started, “I believe Myra’s maternal instinct has gotten a little bit out of control.” He prayed Y/N wouldn’t get like that as well.

“ _Hopefully_ you can work this out as a family when this is all over…” Hoffman scolded him. Sebastian shook his head.

“ _Anyway_ , I’ve been into Theodore’s reality. If it’s a reflection of his psyche he’s seriously got some deep mental issues.”

“That would explain why he’s so powerful.” Hoffman seemed deep in thought.

“And yet he’s hiding…” Sebastian pointed out. She shook her head.

“Perhaps it’s easier to manipulate from the shadows.”

“Well I’m about to drag him out of the shadows.”

“...If what Liam told us was true.”

“There’s only one way to find out.” Sebastian looked over at the machine. “I don’t know if you should be in here when this thing goes off.”

“I don’t think I want to be.” She told him. “There were some interesting items in the other room that Liam was working on. I want to go check and see if there’s anything that might be useful.”

“Okay. But then you should get back to the safe house. No telling what will happen in here once we shut this thing down. We should update Y/N. She’s probably going crazy right now.”

“Aren’t we all?” Torres asked, she was standing next to the machine now. Hoffman looked back at Sebastian.

“Will do.” She nodded “I’m going to check out the equipment in the other room. Good luck, you two.” Sebastian nodded and walked over to Torres as Hoffman left.

“Tell me something Torres, so you knew Hoffman before this?”

“Everybody knows Hoffman. You don’t get into Mobius without passing through her office.” Torres crossed her arms.

“Can she be trusted?”

“I might’ve said “no” before, but… Nothing like being abandoned by your corporate masters to make you rethink your position. And I mean, she did help Y/N, right?”

“Yeah, I guess. But that may have only been because Stefano would have killed her.”

“I don't know. She’s alright, just a bit of a cold fish. I have trouble completely trusting people who look at me like I’m something in a petri dish…”

“Yeah… You know, I don’t know what’s gonna happen when we blow this thing up.” Sebastian pointed to the machine.

“Me either.” Torres shrugged. “But at least we’re being proactive.”

“I don’t think we’re going to convince Theodore to leave Lily alone. He doesn’t seem like the kinda guy who’d be talked into doing the right thing…”

“So you’re giving me orders to shoot on sight?” Torres asked.

“I’m just saying, be prepared for anything.” Sebastian explained. “You can’t predict what’s gonna happen in this place. For all we know, Stefano’s gonna show up with his damn camera, trying to kill us.” Sebastian shrugged. “And hey, no offense, but how did someone as smart and headstrong as you wind up in an organization like Mobius?”

“I _was_ a demolitions expert in the army. They loaned me out to Mobius for some black ops stuff. Once my term was up, they came knocking.” Torres sighed and crossed her arms.

“And you just joined up like that?” Sebastian shook his head.

“They were pretty good salesmen. They don’t tell you everything when you sign up. I was… tasked with some things I’m not proud of. They expect you to follow blindly. And if you disobey…” She stopped herself. “When Myra offered me the opportunity to get out, I had to take it. I’ve still got some morals left, despite the things that I’ve had to do…” Sebastian nodded, thinking now was probably a good time to change the subject.

“Is that enough to arm this thing?” He asked. Torres smiled.

“Like ten times over. And it’s ready to go when you are.”

“Let’s do it. I’m good to go.” The two of them took a few steps back. (They definitely should have stepped back some more)

“Okay, here we go. Operation: Kick Ass happening in 3… 2… 1!” Torres pressed the button on the remote in her hand. They both took cover as the machine exploded. Sebastian stood, coughing from the smoke.

“Are you okay, Torres?” He called out. He couldn’t see a damned thing. “Torres? Where’d you…?” The smoke cleared in front of him and he could see the broken down machine. Suddenly the candles on either side of it blazed much brighter.

“Sebastian Castellanos.” Sebastian grabbed his gun. Okay, where was this asshole? “You refuse to step into the darkness… so you try to bring me to the light?” Sebastian quickly turned around aiming his gun, but no one was there. “Your rash decisions have always been your downfall.” The candles blazed brighter with every word. “Come then. I await you.” Sebastian was surrounded by flames, then complete darkness. He was no longer in the Marrow, but in some kind of void.

“You want to find your beloved daughter…” Sebastian put down his gun. “Go then.” Theodore sounded angrier than usual. If that was even possible. “See if it’s everything you dreamt of.” Sebastian’s communicator beeped.

“...I’m over here, Dad… Hurry…” It was Lily.

“Oh god… Lily? You’re here…” He turned on his flashlight. Was he walking through _blood_ ? Sebastian pulled the communicator off of his belt and followed the signal. He could hear the groans of lost in the darkness. He had to get to her before they did. He _had_ too.

 

~*~*~*~

 

You sighed.

“Come on… it's so simple…. What was it…?” You were still standing at the damn computer trying to remember the stupid code. “Maybe someone wrote it down…” You looked around the desk and found a tiny slip of paper under the keyboard. “Aha!” Thank god the people of Mobius had as shitty a memory as you. You typed in the code, reading it aloud as you did. “7-18-06-2-11-12”

 

~*~*~*~

 

The void was lit only by scattered candles, Sebastian was relying heavily on his flashlight. The entire area smelled of blood and the only things he had seen were lost and ruins of buildings, as well as some old oil pumps that were pumping the blood. Where was Lily? Sebastian saw what looked to be a door and went up to it. It was… Lily’s bedroom door. Behind it were the scattered objects of her room. Dolls, her bed, pillows. Sebastian reached for the doll that looked like Lily. Instantly it burst into flames and a shockwave went through him.

“Mom never gave up. Not like YOU…” Lily told him. Sebastian looked around to see that he was now standing in Lily’s room. She stood by the window across from him. “She tried to tell you.”

“But you were too stupid to listen…” Myra’s voice had joined Lily’s and yet again Sebastian found himself in the void.

“No… no, no. This isn’t right.” He grabbed his head in an attempt to stop the oncoming headache.

“Myra succeeded where you failed.” Theodore’s voice boomed around him. “You refused to listen. You lost them both, and then became lost yourself.”

“You don’t know anything about me!” Sebastian shouted.

“Myra understood that goals can be achieved by submission. By joining…” Sebastian’s communicator beeped again, picking up a new signal.

“Why weren’t you there when I needed you?” Lily asked. Sebastian tuned in to the signal and followed it. He found what looked to be the staircase from his home, but it was never ending. “Now you come.” Lily’s voice came through the communicator again. “When it’s too late. You’re always too late…” About half way down, the stairs and walls turned from wood into stone.

“After all this, you still want to be reunited with Lily?” Theodore asked.

“I… I do. I… I need to find her.” Sebastian mumbled, continuing down the steps.

“Fine. Then come to me…” Sebastian reached the end of the stairs and found himself in some sort of throne room. He took a few steps forward then stopped when suddenly all of the candles were lit. He had been walking on a red carpet straight to the throne. Lily stood between him and the throne, looking down.

“Lily?” Sebastian asked “Is it really you?” He cautiously stepped forward, not wanting to scare her. He got so that he was only a couple feet away. “Lily…” He reached for her and the second he touched her she burst into flames and he was knocked back. “No… Lily…” Sebastian stood, shaking his head.

“ _There_ she is. Your precious daughter.” Theodore told him, unseen. “Isn’t this what you wanted?” Sebastian could practically feel the breath on the back of his neck. He quickly turned around, but no one was there.

“Dad…?” Sebastian turned back to Lily, who was no longer on fire. Theodore was standing behind her and gestured for her to step forward. She did. “You let this happen to me… Why didn’t you save me?” Sebastian backed up, shaking his head.

“No, please… I-I couldn’t. I wanted to…” Lily continued forward. Everytime she took a step, the carpet below was set ablaze where she had touched it. Sebastian started to step back some more. Lily ran towards him. “No…” She hugged his leg and he tried to pull away. When nothing happened he looked down at her. She looked up at him, smiling. She was lit ablaze and most of her face had burned away. Sebastian caught fire as Lily burned away. “No!” He moved around in an attempt to put out the flames and cried out. After a moment the flames had burned themselves out. Sebastian fell on to his knees. Theodore stood in front of him, watching him closely. He started to close the gap between them, using his cane as support.

“You are doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past. Unless you join me…” Sebastian’s head began pounding. The same headache he would always get at Beacon. He fought against it, grabbing his head, whimpering from the pain. “Do that, and I can make your dreams come true. Together we can take Lily from Myra…” Sebastian shook his head as the piercing ringing grew louder, causing his pain to worsen. “Once I have the power of the Core, you will be truly free…” Sebastian pulled out his handgun and tried to aim it.

“N-No…” He managed to get out as Theodore backed up.

“It will take more than bullets to stop me… Will you never learn?” The noise grew ever louder as Sebastian’s vision faded in and out. Sebastian fired. But, it wasn’t Theodore that he shot. No.

It was Torres. She put her hand over her abdomen as blood seeped through her shirt.

“...You sh… shot me, Sebastian… why?”

“N-No.” He reached out for her as she fell to the ground, but so did he and his world went black.

 

“Come on, man. Let’s get you out of here.” All Sebastian could see was the gray tile of the floor back where they destroyed the machine. Torres was helping him walk. Was she actually okay? His vision faded to black again.

 

He awoke again to the sound of an assault rifle. He looked up to see Torres taking on an army of lost. She was still clutching her abdomen after every shot. Almost falling with every recoil of her gun. No, she wasn't okay. He had actually shot her. A lost grabbed her by the leg and she smacked it away with the butt of the gun. She tried to fire again, but she was out of ammo. Torres threw her gun at the lost, knocking it down. She started to grab her handgun as another lost jumped onto her back. Sebastian’s vision faded as he heard her scream.

 

Sebastian opened his eyes to see Torres’ bloodied shirt. She was holding him so he was sitting up. He groggily looked up at her face.

“You can’t let him get you…” She told him, grimacing. “You gotta…” She was struggling for air. “You gotta give that son of a bitch some pay back…” He blacked out again.

* * *

 

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	18. Loved Ones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You finally meet Torres and Sebastian comes up with a plan for what to do next.

When you got into the Marrow you quickly made your way into Hoffman’s safe house.

“Hoffman?” You called. You could hear someone banging on the other door, as you saw Hoffman run over to it. It was a young woman and she had… Sebastian? He was unconscious, draped over her shoulder as Hoffman opened the door for her and she staggered in. “What happened?” You asked, running over. They smelled of smoke and were covered in blood. “Is he okay? Are  _ you _ okay?” The woman carried Sebastian into the room, Hoffman helping, and you closed the door behind them, locking it. “Someone answer me!”

“Y/N, this is Esmeralda Torres. Get the medkit!” Hoffman helped Torres set Sebastian down. Torres practically collapsed after that. You grabbed all the medical supplies you could see and brought them over to Hoffman. You then took Rozi off of your chest and laid her on the ground, wrapped in her blanket/carrier, next to Sebastian. You went back to Hoffman, helping her get Torres onto a bench. Torres was struggling to breathe. She was bleeding so much. You couldn't even tell where from. “Apply pressure here.” Hoffman told you. You did as you were asked. Torres grimaced. 

“What happened?” You asked as Hoffman worked to try and stop more bleeding, pulling some of Torres’ clothes and gun holsters off as fast as she could to get to the source. 

“L-Listen. There was a plan…” Torres started. “Me, Myra…”

“Sebastian's wife?” You asked. She weakly nodded.

“Theod-dore and Kidman… we were gonna g-get Lily out.” You still weren’t sure who Kidman was, but they were Mobius and apparently helpful.

“Theodore? He was  _ helping _ ?” You clarified. She nodded again.

“...we were gonna… take M-Mobius down… for good.” Torres winced as Hoffman emptied a syringe into her arm.

“How?” Hoffman asked.

“M-Myra… would… become the core…” She was having trouble holding her eyes open.

“And submit a signal through the chips.” Hoffman nodded as she continued working.

“Chips?” You asked.

“Everyone in Mobius has a chip in their head.” Hoffman explained. You slowly nodded. Mobius just kept sounding better and better. You turned back to Torres. 

“You still didn't say how you were hurt.”

“... Lost… those u-ugly sons of…” Torres struggled for words. She was fading fast. “...C-can’t let Theodore…” She closed her eyes.

“Hey, Esmeralda, talk to me. Stay with me.” You patted her cheek to try and keep her alert.

“T-Tell Sebastian…” She looked up at you. “I'm sorry…. For what… I did…” You didn't know what she meant, but you nodded. “S-save….” She was gasping for air. “L-L….” The muscles in her face slowly relaxed as her eyes lost focus. The room fell silent. 

It was a moment before you and Hoffman could bring yourselves to look at each other. She looked down, closing her eyes. You bit your lip and gently closed Esmeralda's eyes. 

“Rest in peace.” You whispered. Hoffman fixed Torres’ clothes and arms to make her look more comfortable. 

“She was a good soldier.” Hoffman told you. “She was helping Sebastian destroy a machine made to hide Theodore. Things must have gone badly from there.” You nodded and looked back at Sebastian. He seemed alright. But like he was having a nightmare. You walked over and picked up Rozalia, holding her close, she made a small noise in response. You turned back to Hoffman.

“And O’Neal?” You were afraid to ask. She shook her head.

“Theodore got to him.” She wiped away a stray tear and you nodded. “He had Liam build the machine to hide him. Sebastian had to… kill Liam. He then called Esmeralda to destroy it.” She paused and you nodded, the puzzle pieces falling into place in your mind. You didn't particularly  _ like  _ O’Neal. But he didn't deserve to die. Not like that. “Stefano?” Hoffman changed the subject as she placed a sheet over Torres.

“I'm not sure. He was acting weird.” You paused. “Weirder than usual. He was asking if he should check on Sebastian. And then he said there was something he had to do and left.” Hoffman seemed like she was thinking for a moment, then looked up, giving you a grim look.

“Theodore might have him.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

“Sebastian?” The world around him was white. “What’s wrong?” Who was talking to him…? “Are you alright?” Ah, yes. It was Myra. His beautiful wife. “You’ve been working too hard. It’s making you delirious.”

“Myra…?” Sebastian woke up on his bed back home. Sunlight shone through the curtains, he could tell it was a nice day. He sat on the edge of the bed. “Torres… where…?” He stood and looked around some more. “I’m… home? How did I….” He started to search the house for anyone else, and stopped at the door brightly decorated with butterflies and drawings. He took a deep breath and opened it. The room was empty. Sebastian wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but he was still disappointed.

“Lily’s room… Just the way it used to be…” He looked around at the various brightly colored drawings that lined the walls. “The way I wish it had stayed.” Sebastian continued on to search his office. Which was a mess, papers and books were scattered everywhere and it stunk of cigarette smoke. He looked at the desk. 

“I buried myself in work so hard…” He sighed, looking at his family portrait. “If I could only get some that time back… I’d spend it with them.” He walked out to the upstairs hall and glanced up at the portrait Lily had drawn of the three of them. “Lily’s drawing… God, I hope she still has some of that innocence left after all this…” He thought as he walked downstairs. Lily ran across the room in front of him, wearing her signature pink pajamas. “Lily?” He called after her. But it must’ve been his mind playing tricks on him. He continued to the living room, looking over the wedding photos, baby pictures, and various commendations. “Myra… what an incredible woman. She really could do it all. No wonder she was able to infiltrate Mobius. Once she set her mind to something, she wouldn’t stop… not like me…”

He looked towards the kitchen. Was that Myra he saw standing there a second ago? He went over to where he thought he had seen her. On the table lay a letter, neatly penned. Myra’s handwriting. “That letter… Myra’s last communication. It was hidden with her files.” He picked it up. “It sounded so crazy at the time, but I should have believed her…” 

 

_ “My dearest Sebastian, _

_ If you’ve received this letter, then I fear the worst has come to pass. It means that my investigation got too close to the truth. It means that you may never see me again. _

_ I’m sorry I kept it from you, but it was to protect you… from either the truth or my madness.  _

_ I’ve enclosed a copy of my files. I only hope that you never recieve them, but if you do… It’s up to you to finish what I started. Please, find justice for Lily. And for me. _

_ I love you with all of my heart.  _

_ Myra” _

 

Sebastian could hear her reading the whole letter to him in his head. He set the letter down and pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling the tears start to well up in his eyes.

“I’m so sorry, Sebastian.” He slowly looked up. It couldn’t be… Myra was standing in the doorway. Her golden hair pulled back into her signature bun. She wore a nice white sweater and her favorite pearl earrings. “You’ve endured so much. All this time. All alone.” Sebastian walked through the living room, toward her.

“It’s my fault. You tried to tell me.” He paused and shook his head. “But I didn’t believe you.” He started to walk towards her again, his hand on his head. “And now I’m so messed up, I’m talking to a hallucination.” He slowly sat down on the couch. “I failed you. I couldn’t save Lily from the fire… I failed everyone…” He put his head in his hands and began to weep. 

“That’s not true, Sebastian. There was no fire to save her from. You know this now…” Myra reminded him. Sebastian looked up.

“But I couldn’t protect her.” He looked down again, his tears wetting his face.

“How could you?” Myra asked him. “Mobius are a force of nature.” She sat on the couch next to him, and he looked over at her. “What you’re doing… It’s like blaming yourself for an earthquake. It wasn’t your fault.” She gave him a small smile and placed her hand on his leg. “You have to stop torturing yourself. You’re a good man, Sebastian. That’s why I married you.” She smiled at him. “And this time, you  _ can  _ save her.” Sebastian looked down. He slowly moved his hand to set it atop of Myra’s, but she stood. He reached out for her as she began to walk towards the door. “There are too many forces against you. You have to stay strong.” Sebastian stood, watching her. He started to follow her. “Don’t let the past defeat you.” She turned around once she was outside. “I forgive you. And Lily will, too. But the most important thing is that you forgive yourself.” Sebastian looked down.

“... “forgive yourself”...” He repeated. The words seemed foreign to him, but he knew them to be true. He looked back up at Myra, she smiled at him and in a flash of light, she was gone. 

“She’s right.” He told himself. “She’s always been right. Theodore uses my own guilt against me… But guilt for what? It’s their fault, not mine. They took everything from me. I didn’t start any of this…” He reminded himself. “...But I’m gonna finish it. And god help anybody that stands in my way.” Suddenly there was a knock on his front door.

“Wake up, Sebastian!” It was Hoffman. The knocks continued, he slowly opened the door as the world around him faded away.

 

“Ugh… what…?” Sebastian grabbed his head as he started to wake up. He stood, you turned to look at him, giving him a sympathetic look. “Y/N? Hoffman? What happened?” You turned to look at Hoffman who was sitting crouched next to a covered body. Esmeralda. Sebastian slowly walked closer. Hoffman looked up at him and you placed your free hand on his shoulder, your other arm holding tightly onto your daughter.

“She brought you here.” Hoffman looked down. “I’m sorry, Sebastian. I tried to save her, but…” Sebastian shook his head.

“No… I shot her.” You turned to look at him, surprised to hear that.

“The bullet wound was superficial.” Hoffman sighed. “She died from injuries sustained in battle with those  _ things _ .” You looked down.

“Dammit. She didn’t have to die like that… She was a good soldier.” He brushed your hand off of his shoulder and began to back up. “She just wanted to save Lily… and now she’s dead.” He leaned against the wall, hiding his face under his arm. “It’s all my fault. Again… 

“No, Sebastian.” You told him. “It’s not your fault.” Hoffman stood, looking over at him.

“Don’t let him do this to you.” She told him. He pulled away from the wall.

“You’re right… That damned son of a bitch.” You covered Rozi’s ears as Sebastian turned to face you and Hoffman. “This is what he wants. Trying to make me feel guilty… But he’s the one who did this. Not me. He’s the guilty one…” Sebastian looked over at Esmeralda. “But she might have lived if she didn't try to save me.”

“Don't feel guilty.” Hoffman said. “ She told us about The Plan. She wanted it to succeed. She made the decision to get you. She knew the risks and did what she thought was right.”

“She said that she was sorry.” You told him.

“For what? Dying? We just met.” Hoffman took a deep breath.

“Esmeralda… Is the operative who took Lily from your home and burned it down. She's felt guilty ever since. That's why she joined Myra. That why she risked her life to save you.”

“What?” You and Sebastian said in unison.

“Don't hate her.” Hoffman told you both, shaking her head. “She didn't have a choice at the time. And she did everything she could to make it right.” You slowly nodded. Mobius just kept sounding better and better.

“I can't hate her.” Sebastian sighed. “She sacrificed herself for The Plan. She made her amends. I'm sorry Esmeralda.  I'll make sure you didn't die for nothing. I’ll hunt down Theodore like the dog that he is.” He picked up Torres’ assault rifle, looking it over to make sure it still worked, then put it on his back. “Okay time to clean house. I’ve just got to find Theodore.”

“That’s not a problem. Destroying Liam’s machine worked.” Hoffman explained.

“Theodore’s out in the open now.” You sighed. “The problem is getting to him.”

“What do you mean?” Sebastian asked.

“I picked this up on the exterior surveillance system cameras. Have a look.” Hoffman walked over to her computer, you and Sebastian followed. On the screen was a tower of sorts surrounded by flames. “Theodore's stronghold appeared in the middle of Union. But it's surrounded by what looks like a massive wall of fire.”

“Shit. I won't be able to get through it…”

“I think that there may be a way.” Hoffman started. “I found a device in Liam's equipment room that should be able to help.”

“Great. Let's see it.”

“It's not quite ready.” Hoffman shook her head. “I still have to do a few tweaks.”

“Okay. Go do what you have to do.” Sebastian told her. “I remember there being a hotel near there. I'll go check if it's safe then send you the coordinates. You can meet me there with the device. But before I go, Hoffman. Theodore's been messing with my mind. Everytime I see him, he uses my own nightmares against me.” Hoffman crossed her arms.

“That sounds like him. He’s a master of neuro-linguistic programming. And in here, the linguistic part becomes irrelevant. Why talk when he can get straight into your mind?” Sebastian sighed.

“He almost had me… but I searched inside myself. And there was someone there. Someone who told me what I needed to do. I know I can take him on now.”

“Yes.” Hoffman nodded. “I can see that you're ready.” 

“How did you…” You started to ask “Right.” 

“...the team psychologist.” The three of you said in unison. 

“So, Sebastian,” You looked over at him. “What is my part in this great plan of yours?” You asked. Sebastian looked over at you. 

“Staying here with your baby.” You weren't sure what you were expecting. Sebastian looked around. He had finally noticed that the conversation had gone without a certain someone's arrogant comments. “Where's Stefano?” You looked down at Rozi, who stirred in her sleep. 

“We think Theodore may have him.” Hoffman explained. 

“Shit.” Sebastian grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

* * *

 

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	19. Sides of a Coin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian finds Stefano.

Stefano wiped the sweat off of his brow and rolled up his sleeves, careful of the fresh burns on his arms. He hated it here. First of all, it was hot. Way too much fire. Second of all, it was  _ hideous _ . The whole “medieval torture chamber” scheme was  _ so _ over used. But he didn’t really have room for negotiation, and he probably wouldn’t be here much longer. Either he would kill Sebastian and get what he wanted, or he would die. Simple. 

“Mr. Valentini.” Stefano turned to see one of Theodore’s henchmen. A “Harbinger” as he called them. They were just as repulsive and unoriginal as everything else here. Although he supposed the melding of the gas mask to the face was an  _ interesting _ touch. “Castellanos has been spotted near the Devil’s Own Taproom.  _ He _ asks that you dispose of him.” Stefano nodded, glancing in the direction of Theodore’s throne room before he teleported away in a cloud of blue smoke.

 

Sebastian ducked into the tap room, quickly hiding behind a booth. Theodore’s henchmen were everywhere. Whether it be the firebeings or the guys like O’Neal, they were burning up everything in sight. Sebastian had to admit he appreciated them burning up the lost, but he didn’t really like them burning up all of his hiding places. He hoped the hotel was still intact. 

“I’m sorry, Father. I lost him.” Theodore’s man outside said as he stormed off. After a minute it seemed like the coast was finally clear. Wait… what was that blue flash he just saw outside a second ago…? Heels clicked across the floor behind him, growing closer.  _ Shit. _

“Good to see you again,  _ Sebastian _ .” Sebastian ducked out of the way just as a knife flew past his shoulder. He aimed his handgun and fired. Stefano teleported to the side.

“I thought we were done with this.” Sebastian grumbled, keeping his gun aimed. “You got Y/N back. You’ve got your daughter to look after. What are you  _ doing _ ?” Sebastian could tell he was still talking to the actual Stefano and not just Theodore controlling him. Although he wasn’t sure why he was trying to reason with him. But he took note of the burns across Stefano’s arms. Theodore probably found him just as annoying as Sebastian did.

“As you said, I’ve got my daughter to look after.” Stefano spun his knife on his finger. “And yet again, you’ve been  _ outbid _ .” He threw the knife and it grazed Sebastian’s side. Sebastian grabbed his side and fired at him again, missing.

“We can take down Theodore together. We can’t let that son of a bitch get away with this shit.” Sebastian pleaded as Stefano spun another knife. At least he was listening. “He’s trying to get in your head. We can take him down, get Lily, and get out of here. You can go back to Krimson City and raise Rozalia with Y/N.” Stefano narrowed his eyes.

“ “We.” ” He laughed “You know, not all of us could have  _ perfect _ little lives back in Krimson City,  _ Detective _ .” Sebastian’s eyes widened. “What? You don’t remember dear, sweet,  _ headless _ Emily?” Stefano smiled.

“Shit...” Sebastian knew he had seen Stefano before Union. The friend and photographer of the most recent victim in a series of murders a couple years back. That, when Sebastian thought about it, Stefano had probably committed himself. 

“But wait, you  _ threw away _ that  _ nice life _ , didn’t you?” Stefano teleported out of the way as Sebastian fired again. “What I would have given, to have even a _ taste _ of the success you  _ wasted _ .” Stefano narrowed his eyes again. “No,  _ some _ of us had to _ struggle _ to keep  _ small _ studios, while  _ philistine critics _ tore us apart. So, forgive me if I’d prefer to stay  _ here _ .” Stefano ran forward to stab Sebastian, who jumped over the counter and grabbed his crossbow.

“I don’t have time for this!” Sebastian yelled loading his crossbow with his last shock bolt. “Either you’re helping me take down Theodore or you’re getting out of my way.” Sebastian aimed. Stefano stood in front of him, he had taken out his camera and his face was unreadable.

“He will kill Y/N and Rozalia if I do not kill you.”

“Then I guess that’s how it is.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

You paced around the room, rocking Rozi in your arms. She hadn’t stopped crying since a little after Sebastian had left. You turned to Hoffman, who had been ignoring you both as best she could and working on Liam’s machine.

“Hoffman, I don’t know what to do. I tried feeding her, she doesn’t need changed, she won’t go to sleep…” You told her through the cries. She turned and gave you a sympathetic look.

“Babies can sometimes tell when the people around them are stressed.” She explained over the baby’s screams. “They also know the difference between voices and can already tell the difference between faces. Either she is picking up on  _ our _ stress, or she misses her father.” You sighed.

“What am I supposed to do? We’re in a life or death situation, of course we’re stressed! And how the hell am I supposed to do anything about Stefano disappearing or being brainwashed?” You were close to crying with her. Hoffman shook her head.

“Let me try to call-” Her communicator started to ring. Sebastian, just the person she was looking for. 

“The hotel’s clear, Hoffman. Are you done with your twe- Is that Rozi in the background?” He asked.

“She hasn’t stopped crying since you left. By any chance have you run into-”

“Stefano? Unfortunately.” You looked towards Hoffman, still trying to calm Rozi.

“And?” She asked.

“Apparently, Theodore’s been threatening Y/N and Rozi. Stefano didn’t seem too happy to be working for him again.” Sebastian explained. “I’ll have to tell you the rest in person.  _ He _ may be able to listen in to this.” You were growing increasingly anxious, but there wasn’t much you could do about it. Hoffman gave you another sympathetic look.

“Okay, is there anything I can tell Y/N?” She asked Sebastian.

“Her handgun is on the shelf. She should take it.” Sebastian told her. “And that,  _ I guess _ , she can come with you.”

“Okay, well, I’ve finished up my work on Liam’s machine.”

“Okay, I’m sending you the coordinates.” Sebastian hung up. You walked over to the shelf, still rocking Rozi. She seemed to be crying herself to sleep. You grabbed your handgun and put it in your holster.

“Are you sure you’re well enough to travel across town?” Hoffman asked, picking up her machine. 

“I should be alright.” You picked up the blanket you had turned into a baby carrier and put it on, putting Rozi in it so once again she was closer to you. It seemed to calm her dramatically. You couldn’t help but smile.

“Let’s get going.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian opened the door for you both and closed it behind you. Hoffman set down her machine by the fireplace. You nervously looked around.

“Where’s-” Sebastian shushed you and put a finger to his lips. With the other hand he gestured upstairs. You gave him a slightly confused look, but started up the stairs. At the end of the hall you could see Stefano. He was no longer wearing the bandage around his face from his and Sebastian’s fight in the theater, and was he using… a cane? You walked towards him, he hadn’t seemed to notice you yet and was staring at an empty frame on the wall.

“Maria.” He whispered. “My dear  _ Maria _ .” He turned towards you. “One of my favorite pieces.” You assumed he meant whatever used to be in the frame. Maybe that was one of the ones Sebastian had destroyed what seemed like ages ago. Stefano reached out, gently touching your face. You looked at his arm, it was badly burned.

“You could have told me he was threatening you.” You told him. “I can handle myself, you know.” He seemed amused by that. You had changed so much from when you two had first met. And he was just growing ever fonder of you.

“I had to keep you safe. Have to.” He corrected himself. “The both of you.” He looked down at Rozi. You pulled up his sleeve, he winced.

“You’re burned.” 

“A welcome back gift from Theodore.” He fixed his sleeve so the burn wasn’t as visible. You looked at the makeshift cane in his hand.

“Why do you have this?” You gestured to it. He looked where you were pointing and gave a small laugh.

“Since the accident that cost me my eye, I’ve always had a  _ slight _ limp. But one can only be hit with so much electricity and explosive force before their limbs start to malfunction.” You looked up at his face.

“So you and Sebastian did fight.” You clarified. “Why didn’t he kill you?” Stefano shrugged then took Rozi from you. He smiled down at her while gently rocking her in his arms, ignoring the pain from the burns.

“Maybe he realized we aren’t so different after all.” 

 

~*~*~*~

 

“Well, here it is.” Hoffman gestured to the machine. It looked kind of like the main terminal of the STEM system, but smaller, and on a tripod.

“What is it?” Sebastian asked.

“It’s a portable Field Stabilizer. O’Neal must’ve been working on it before Theodore changed him.” Hoffman explained. “It creates a small area of stabilization that should keep the fire away.” She crossed her arms.

“How small?”

“It’s circumference is about as big as a Safe House.”

“Big enough to protect me. Good. How’s it work?” Hoffman sighed.

“That’s the tough part. It’s a prototype, so it’s a little temperamental.  _ I _ have to operate it.” She explained. “Last thing you want is for it to go on the fritz while you’re in a wall of flame.”

“I can’t let you do that. It’s too dangerous.” Sebastian insisted. Hoffman shook her head.

“So is staying here if you can’t get inside. Besides, I’m sick of hiding.” She crossed her arms. “The only way we’re going to get through this is if we work together.” Sebastian sighed.

“Don’t let Y/N hear that.” Sebastian reminded her.

“Listen, it’s the only way to save Lily. And what if you need emergency psychoanalysis? Who’s gonna help you then?” She joked.

“You know just what to say to convince me, Hoffman.”

“Of course I do.” She smiled. “I’m the team psychologist.”

“That you are.” Sebastian smiled. 

 

You walked down the stairs in time to hear Sebastian and Hoffman joking around. Hoffman turned to look at you as Sebastian picked up some supplies.

“How is he?” She asked. 

“Rough, but he’ll live. He seems more distraught over the empty picture frame upstairs than by almost dying.” You told her.

“Psychopathic personality type.” She reminded you. You shrugged.

“Doesn’t seem so lacking in empathy now, does he?” You laughed.

“Honestly it’s quite surprising how much he cares about you. Originally I had assumed it was only because you were pregnant, but he seems to care about you just as much or more since Rozalia’s birth.” You were a little insulted but understood where she was coming from. 

“But I think the real surprise here isn’t that Stefano has a heart,” You turned to Sebastian. “But that Sebastian saved him.” Sebastian was quick to turn away and even quicker to respond.

“He has valuable information on Theodore’s stronghold and is a strong ally. Even with questionable morals and a cocky attitude.” He told you as he reloaded his handgun. You nodded, smiling. 

“And that you saw in him a father doing what he could to keep his daughter out of Theodore’s hands.” Hoffman chimed in.

“Sounds familiar.” You laughed.

“If you’re suggesting I’m anything like that freak, then you are out of your damn mind.” Sebastian grumbled.

* * *

 

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	20. Goodbyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hoffman gives you some information before she and Sebastian set out for Theodore.

“Let me just craft some more supplies and we can get going, Hoffman.” Sebastian told her, pulling out some gunpowder and other materials. Hoffman nodded and turned to you.

“Listen, Y/N. I’ve done some more research, and before I go I need to tell you this.” The way she was talking suggested that she wasn’t going to make it back.

“Can’t we talk about it after you guys kill Theodore?” She shook her head.

“And I know this will be hard to take,” She took a deep breath. “You can’t take Rozalia with you when we leave STEM.” 

“What..?” You didn’t know what to say. Sebastian looked over at the two of you.

“If my hypothesis is correct, taking her out would lead to you having a multiple personality disorder or worse. She has to stay here. No matter what happens. For your own health.”

“But that’s just a hypothesis, you don’t know for s-”

“With all of our knowledge of STEM, that is the most likely outcome.” She sighed, shaking her head. “She can’t leave here.”

“So I'm just supposed to abandon my baby in this nightmare?” 

“I know it's difficult. But you have to remember that she isn't really r-”

“Real? Were you going to say she isn't  _ real _ ?”

“Y/N, please, I tried to tell you before that I didn't think she would-”

“I know.” You sighed, holding back tears, and wrapping your arms around yourself. Sebastian shook his head, sighing and turned back to what he was doing. You didn’t know how you were going to part with Rozalia. Everything had been so real. She was your  _ baby _ . And you couldn’t even start to think of what you would tell Stefano. But it was either leave her in STEM, or be fucked up for the rest of your life. Not that this experience wasn’t already going to fuck you up for the rest of your life. 

“We should get going, Hoffman.” Sebastian told her. She nodded and Sebastian turned towards you, putting his hand on your shoulder. “Stay here with Stefano, I don’t think he’s strong enough to come with us, otherwise I would take him.”

“Here,” Hoffman took her communicator off of her belt and handed it to you. “Take this, we’ll contact you with any updates.” You nodded.

“Good luck you guys.” Sebastian and Hoffman both gave you small smiles before Hoffman picked up her machine and they walked out the door. You sighed, watching them walk away, then went upstairs.

 

~*~*~*~

 

“Do you think she’ll be able to do it?” Sebastian asked Hoffman as they walked. 

“I think she’ll see the reason behind it and accept what has to be done.” She told him. 

They reached the wall of the fire, the roaring of the flames drowning out any other noise as they readied themselves. There would be no turning back. 

“I’ll have to carry and operate it from here.” Hoffman turned towards Sebastian, she had to shout to be heard. “It should protect us from the fire, but it won’t stop those things in there from trying to kill us.” 

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of them.” Sebastian shouted as he pulled out his handgun and took off the safety.

“Here goes nothing…” Hoffman turned on the machine and instantly the flames were pushed away from them as the machine shined a bright blue. “It’s working! Just make sure to stay inside the dome. Come on!” They began slowly forward, Sebastian keeping a close eye on his surroundings.

“I can’t see anything through these flames!” He shouted.

“Just keep an eye out for those things and follow me! I know the way!” She yelled back. It didn’t take long for them to hear growling in front of them. “One’s coming through!”

“I got him!” Sebastian fired a few times as the fire being charged forward. With just the right shot, the head exploded and the body fell to the ground. More growling could be heard. “Another one, watch your back, Hoffman!” He aimed where he heard the groans and fired.

“That’s what you’re here for.” She reminded him.

“Good thing! They’re everywhere.” He shot down another one on the other side of them. “How much further?”

“It seems a lot longer once you’re in it.”

“He wants to keep us out. Good. That means he’s afraid…” The machine surged and Hoffman paused to look up at it. “Don’t stop now! We’re almost there!” Sebastian shouted. The small dome around them began to grow ever smaller.

“Hold on! There’s something wrong with the stabilizer!” She set it down and quickly worked to fix it. Groans filled the air around them and Sebastian fired when the beings got too close.

“Can you fix it?”

“I’m working on it. Just watch my back!” After a minute the machine surged and the dome grew to its original size. “We’re back up! Let’s go!” Hoffman picked it up and began walking again.

“That was close…” Sebastian grumbled.

“I told you it was temperamental!” She reminded him.

“You regretting this yet?” He asked.

“This is my chance to make for what I did to Lily.” Hoffman explained. “And all the others like Y/N I helped put in STEM…” She paused. “So no. I don’t regret it.” Sebastian nodded and took down a couple more fire beings. The machine surged.

“Hoffman, what’s happening?”

“It’s failing again! Hold on…” The dome around them began to shrink again.

“Hurry up! It’s getting hot in here!” Sebastian yelled as he shot another beast. It took a minute or so until she was able to get the machine operational yet again.

“I got it!” She picked up the machine and the dome grew around them.

“We gotta go, now!” They continued forward as growls filled the air yet again. Sebastian turned to see an army of beasts charging forward. “Run!” He yelled. “Almost there!” They reached the steps of the stronghold as a fire being came from the side, tackling Hoffman. The machine fell out of her arms and crashed onto the steps as she screamed. Sebastian turned to see that she was able to push it off of her. Hoffman began to climb up the steps as another being grabbed her ankles. Another grabbed onto her torso as the machine shorted out, the protective dome quickly dissipating.

“Hoffman!” Sebastian cried, diving to grab her hand at the bottom of the steps. Their hands were only inches away. She turned to look at the machine as it shorted another time. She looked back at Sebastian.

“Just go!” She yelled. “Save Lily!” Sebastian was thrown back as the fire consumed Hoffman and the beasts. He quickly jumped up reaching out towards the open doorway he had just fallen through.

“Hoffman! No!” Sebastian cried. He solemnly lowered his head and stood, slowly turning to look down the long corridor. “I’m sorry, Yukiko. I’ll make him pay… I promise.” He wiped the sweat off of his face. Should he update Y/N about it now? No. He’d wait until this was over with.  _ Dammit _ . He couldn’t afford to lose someone else. “After all this…” He whispered as he walked. “We’re the only ones left… But he’s not gonna stop me.”

The first room looked like an abandoned church. Pews, candles and statues were scattered about everywhere. Fire came through the top windows, but didn’t burn the walls. In a sense, it was beautiful. Aside from the pools of blood on the floor and iron bars that separated the different sections of the room. Sebastian walked up to the altar at the other end of the chamber and picked up the scorched note there. Part of Theodore’s “scripture.” All it talked about was the potential he saw in STEM and his want to have everyone as his follower. Yeah, and Sebastian had thought  _ Stefano _ was bad. Theodore made Stefano look like a saint. 

The second room looked like part of it had collapsed at some point around the central elevator shaft. Sebastian sighed looking at the broken thing. 

“Looks like I won’t be going on that.” He mumbled. He continued into a long hallway off of the elevator room. As he started up a small staircase, it suddenly turned to a never ending one. The walls and everything else around him disappearing.

“You’ll never get there.” Theodore’s voice boomed around him. “Just like the last time you wanted to save her.” In a flash, everything was back to the way it was before.

“Dammit.” Sebastian grumbled. “You’re not gonna get to me.” He continued up another small staircase and into a large room, so large it didn’t even look like it could have been in the same building. Flaming cages hung from the ceiling and various mining type machines filled the chamber. Sebastian ducked behind one of the machines as a fire being dug itself out of the ground. 

“Your resolve is pointless.” Theodore told him as the only exit gate began to close. “You will crawl before me. My disciples will break you…” A few of the men like O’Neal stepped into the room, burning everything in sight as more fire beings came up from the ground.

“Shit.” 

 

~*~*~*~

 

You paced back in forth in front of the hotel bed. No word from Sebastian yet.

“Y/N,  _ amore _ , worrying will not help.” Stefano told you as he snapped a picture of Rozalia, who he had laid on the bed and was sitting next to.

“Well, what are we supposed to do?” You turned towards him. “I don’t think taking pictures of Rozi will help either.” He narrowed his eyes and looked at you.

“ “ _ Rozi _ ”?” He asked.

“It’s cuter and easier to say.” You told him. 

“You don’t like the name  _ I _ picked?” He scoffed.

“I didn’t say that, I just said that Rozi is easier to say. I mean, it’s basically the same thing.” 

“The  _ same thing _ ?” He was shocked. “You don't call the “Mona Lisa”  _ Mona _ . You don't call the “Discobolus”  _ Disco _ . It is  _ not _ the “ _ same thing _ ”!” You rolled your eyes as Rozalia started to cry. She hated loud noises. 

“See what you did?” You gestured to Rozi. Stefano gently picked her up, holding her close.

“Shh, shhhh.” He rocked her. “Papa is sorry,  _ bambina _ …” He whispered. You’d seen it a few times now, but it still surprised you every time he went into dad mode. You smiled, but it didn't take long for you to remember the problem with that. Rozalia was going to die. There was nothing you could do about it. She just was. How were you going to tell him…? You sighed. Out of all of the things you had done in STEM, including being shot  _ and _ giving birth, leaving her would be the most painful.

* * *

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	21. Fears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian reaches Theodore.

Sebastian found the lever to open the gate and pulled it. He could hear the gate sliding open as he sighed, wiping the sweat off of his brow. It wasn’t exactly easy to take down Theodore’s “disciples” but he did it. Now he just had to get to Theodore. 

Sebastian made his way towards the gate, quickly taking down any fire beings that stood in his way. He’d had enough of Theodore’s hiding and having others do his dirty work. He started up the spiral staircase as the gate, now behind him, creaked closed once again.

“Help me take Lily from Myra.” Theodore’s voice boomed around Sebastian, although he was starting to wonder if it was only in his head. “Give me the power of the Core.” 

“Why does everyone want to control Union?” Sebastian asked as he continued up the stairs. “It’s not even real!” 

“Union is better than reality.” Theodore told him. “Union is Mobius. Their minds are connected to it. To control Union is to control  _ them _ . To control  _ them _ is to control the world…” 

“If you think I’m going to help an asshole like you take over assholes like them, you’re even crazier than you look.” Sebastian grumbled as he reached the top of the staircase. He turned the crank in the next room to turn off the fire that was blocking the exit and continued up the next staircase. The gate behind him slammed shut as he reached another level. In front of him more fire blocked the path and he could hear more groans and grunts of fire beings. He shot the handle on the flame pipe and the fire went out. The second he stepped into the room the sound of breathing, kind of like Darth Vader’s, was added to the noises. Great. One of those guys like O’Neal.  Sebastian didn’t have time for this. He pulled out Torres’s assault rifle and fired at the man until he was down, doing the same with fire beings and continuing on. He had to pull a couple more levers and shoot some handles to open up his path, but he was  _ not _ going to stop now. 

Sebastian made it into the next room and pulled a lever. A gate closed off the doorway behind him as another did the same in front. Suddenly the floor below him began to glow blue and one of the multi-faced four legged(armed?) creatures crawled up from the ground. Sebastian switched to his handgun and fired until it went down. Two more appeared.

“Shit.” Sebastian reloaded and shot at them both, ducking out of the way when they jumped at him. It only took a couple more shots and they were down. He took a minute to catch his breath as the gate in front of him opened, then he continued up another staircase. The area around him disappeared and once again it seemed as if the staircase was never ending. 

“I offer you one more chance to join the right side of history.” Theodore told him. “Otherwise, you’ll be stuck in your own tortured mind…” Ah, so he was resorting to threatening now. 

“I’m not making any deals with you… “ _ Friend _ .”” Sebastian yelled. At the top of the staircase was the elevator, and even though he swore to himself in Beacon that if he made it out he would never ride another elevator(especially a creepy one like this) he got in and made his way higher.

“I gave you the chance to help me. Because of your refusal, I have no choice. I will dismantle this world.” Theodore told him. “I will find your wife and I will murder her in front of your daughter… Who will suffer dearly at my hands even as I use her power.”

“Not if I kill you first…” 

“What makes you think this time will be any different?” Theodore’s anger was quite obvious now.

“I’ll keep coming back until one of us is dead…”

“Come to me, then. Let the carnage begin…” The elevator stopped at the top floor and the doors opened. Sebastian made his way around what appeared to be some sacrificial pit. Above him was the mark of influence surrounded by fire. He assumed this must have been where he first met Theodore. Sebastian's communicator beeped and he followed the signal. He tuned in and an apparition of Theodore appeared.

“You found her? Excellent...” Who was he talking to? “...You are special. You’ve always been special. That's why I brought you here. Why I allow you to create your own space.” No… he couldn't be talking to… “Prove your fealty to me. Bring me the Core.” Maybe…? “Of course I do. You are an artist, Stefano.” Dammit. “I respect that… But I need the girl first…” The apparition faded. That must have been when Stefano was still in the theater or city hall, at some point between the two he obviously changed plans. 

Sebastian shook his head. He walked forward and opened the large double doors to see Theodore sitting in his throne, surrounded by candles at the other end of the red carpet in front of him. Theodore lifted one of his hands from his cane.

“If it’s a taste of despair you wish, a taste of despair you shall receive.” He opened his palm and in a burst of flames Lily materialized in front of him.

“You did this to me, Dad.” She began walking forward, the ground below her feet burning with every step she took. “You didn’t save me…” Sebastian walked towards her as Theodore watched curiously. 

“It’s okay, sweetie.” Sebastian holstered his gun as he stopped walking. “I’m gonna make it right again.” He crouched onto his knees and opened his arms for her. Lily ran forward and hugged him, he quickly wrapped his arms around her. Theodore glared at him, tightening his grip on his cane. “I love you so much, Lily. I always have. And I always will.” As Sebastian spoke, Lily began to glow and fade away. “And I’m gonna save you this time. I promise.” The second she was gone he looked back at Theodore, returning his fiery glare. Theodore slowly stood, using his cane as support.

“I see you’ve overcome some of your guilt and pain.” Sebastian stood up and reached for his handgun. “But the depth of your past traumas is vast. I know everything about you. I know what lies beneath… You have a deep well of fear from which to draw.” He tapped his cane on the ground. “You’ve seen many horrors,” The world around Sebastian was fading away to black. “And they  _ still _ haunt your memories. Remember where this all began…” Sebastian looked around nervously. “Remember  _ Beacon _ .” Sebastian aimed his gun as piercing ringing filled his ears. He grabbed his head, groaning from the pain. 

Memories of Beacon flashed through his mind and when he opened his eyes, he was there. Beacon Mental Hospital. “Yesss… You remember it all…” Sebastian looked around for Theodore but he was nowhere to be seen. He heard a chainsaw start revving behind him and slowly turned around. In front of him was the Sadist, caged face, bloody shirt and all. He raised the chainsaw and began running for Sebastian. Sebastian ran towards the only door he could see. He kicked it open and ran into the next hallway, which was littered with wheelchairs and gurneys. He turned to look behind him, and there was no one there.

“...What?” He looked in front of him to see the Sadist blocking the elevator. Sebastian stopped as the man revved the chainsaw and ran forward. “Enough of this shit.” Sebastian shook his head and ran towards the man, kicking the gurney in front of him towards the Sadist, who easily cut it in two. Using the gurney as a distraction, he got behind the Sadist and the second he turned around, stabbed him in the neck. The man dropped the chainsaw, falling to his knees. Sebastian turned and looked at the elevator.

“Not this time…” He turned back to the man on the floor and walked passed him, grabbing his knife from the man’s neck, and putting it back in it’s sheath on his hip. He picked up the chainsaw. “You think this will stop me?” He slowly turned around and walked towards the man. Sebastian lifted the chainsaw in the air, as he did the Sadist pulled out a butcher’s knife, holding it up to block the attack. Sebastian pressed harder, revving the saw. He broke through the knife, slicing into the man’s neck. Sebastian cried out as he continued to cut through the man. The movement of the saw caused blood to go everywhere and Sebastian was being showered in it. He pulled away the saw, turning it off. 

“Fuck you…” He managed to say between breaths as he watched the Sadist fall forward, his torso splitting open where it had been cut. Sebastian suddenly heard a screeching noise, like metal against metal. Barbed wire wrapped around his ankles and soon he was quickly being dragged to who knows where. “Oh shit…” He was slammed into the floor. Static noises filled the area around him as he slowly stood up, getting his breath back. It seemed like he was in some kind of prison now. And the world around him was shifting, almost like a glitch of some sort, in front of him he could see someone large standing up, and they turned to look at him. But they didn't have a face. Or a head, for that matter, only a safe with two diles. The Keeper.

The Keeper slammed his hammer into his safe of a head a couple of times before charging forward. Sebastian ducked down a hall and pulled out his crossbow, loading it with whatever he could find. He aimed and fired the bolt, it beeped for a second and exploded. The safe broke open, blood, guts and who knows what else came out as the Keeper fell. Instantly the world around Sebastian began to shift again, he readied himself with a regular bolt. It didn’t take long for him to hear the thundering steps of the Keeper yet again. He aimed and fired, the creature recoiled but didn’t go down. Sebastian rounded a corner, running as he reloaded. As he passed another way to turn, he was tackled to the floor. Pain surged through him. How did that thing get over there so quickly? He fired and hurriedly got up. It was then he noticed another Keeper charging at him. There were two. Great.

Sebastian reloaded and fired at the first one of the Keepers again, trying to keep track of them in his head so he would know how much damage he was doing to which. He ducked around another wall to reload, listening to the sounds of the two keepers running towards him. He decided maybe it would be best to switch to something with more than one consecutive shot and grabbed his revolver. Sebastian came out from hiding and fired at the first one until it’s safe exploded into blood and guts. He reloaded as quick as he possibly could and did the same to the second. The Keeper fell down. It’s safe of a head falling off, and closing again as it tumbled away. 

Sebastian reloaded his gun as he tried to catch his breath. A creaking noise filled the air around him. He looked over to see that the last safe had opened again and blood was trickling from it out onto the floor.

“Huh?” He whispered. Suddenly, a hand with horribly long fingernails popped out of the box. Then another. Then the beast of a woman pulled herself from the safe. It was Ruvik’s twisted recreation of his older sister, Laura. She slowly turned to look at Sebastian, long black hair covering her face. She screamed and the world around them changed to that of an incinerator room. She quickly ran behind a wall as Sebastian ducked behind another. 

“I burned you once, and I’ll do it again…” Sebastian grumbled, taking in his surroundings. Where was the on switch? Ah! He ran towards it, grabbing on, and waiting for Laura to crawl under the valves. Sebastian pulled the lever and the light turned green. But nothing happened. “Shit!” He ducked behind another wall to then see he had to open up the valve for it to work. He pulled out his crossbow and shot Laura with a freeze bolt and ran to the first handle he saw. He grabbed on and started to turn it.

“Come on…” It locked into place. Good. Sebastian ran around looking to see if there was another handle, and there was. Dammit. He grabbed onto it, turning it as quickly as physically possible. Once it locked into place, a buzzer rang. Finally. Sebastian ran back to the lever, narrowly avoiding getting grabbed by Laura. He slammed down the lever. Flames poured down on her. Laura screamed and writhed in pain. The second the flames turned off she phase-shifted out of the way. Sebastian ran off to try to coerce her back into position. It didn't take long for him to get her back near the flames and he pulled down the lever. She screamed as Sebastian stood and watched. But he could see that every second or so she would shift into Theodore and shift back. After a few times of doing this, the figure stayed as Theodore, who screamed from the pain of the flames. 

Sebastian caught his breath and looked around as the world shifted back into Theodore’s stronghold. Theodore patted out the flames on his coat and pushed through one of the large doors leading out of his throne room. 

“W-What are you!?” He asked, stumbling away as Sebastian walked towards him, gun aimed.

“What else have you got?” Sebastian asked angrily. Out of nowhere a large stake, that looked like it was made of ice, pierced through Theodore’s chest from the back. Theodore looked down at it, eyes wide, as the area around it started to turn white. He was quickly pulled back and thrown into the altar behind him. Myra was revealed, her hand having been the stake that stabbed him. She turned to look at Sebastian, the top half of her face still hidden by white… whatever it was. 

“...Myra?” Sebastian whispered. Myra slowly began walking towards him.

“She must stay safe. I will protect Lily from anyone who wants to take her.” She told him as she placed her hands over her heart and stopped walking.

“You did it. Theodore is dead.” Sebastian told her. “Let’s go home.” Myra looked as if she was about it say something when suddenly Theodore jumped up, stabbing her in the neck with a dagger that was hidden in the top of his cane. “No!” Sebastian shouted as Theodore took a step back.

“The power of the Core is mine.” He whispered as Myra turned to look at him. Just as he started to smile, Myra stabbed through his jaw, the top of her stake sticking out of the back of his head. Theodore’s entire head began to grow white, as if being turned to crystal. Myra pulled out her stake and Theodore stumbled back a few steps until he fell into the pit behind him. Sebastian could hear a shattering sort of noise, as if someone had dropped a clay pot onto concrete. Myra stepped up to the edge of the pit.

“Lily is safe now.” She whispered as the dagger in her neck crystallized and broke away. Sebastian holstered his handgun and stepped forward.

“Where is she?” he asked. “Let’s get her and get out of here!” Myra ignored him, raising her hand. As she did, white slime could be seen going across the walls and floors of the stronghold. The ceiling, the cages hanging from it, everything began crashing down around them. “Myra?” Sebastian ducked out of the way of some falling debris as his wife calmly waved her hand in the air. She put her arm down and walked away as debris and dust filled the space between them.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Stefano had finally convinced you to sit down and relax. And you guessed he had a point, worrying wasn’t going to help anybody. You had only been sitting down for few minutes when Stefano started to look strangely at his hands, as if something had changed.

“What’s wrong?” He turned to look at you, a somewhat confused expression of his face.

“The abilities He gifted me with are gone.” He told you. “ _ Theodore _ is gone.” You couldn’t have been happier to hear that, but you didn’t have time to celebrate. The building began to shake around you. You grabbed Rozi and stood. She started to whine.

“We have to get out of here.” You told Stefano, he nodded, grabbing onto your shoulder. Suddenly the three of you were downstairs, Stefano leaning heavily on his makeshift cane. You grabbed his hand, still holding your daughter close to you. “Come on!” The two of you ran outside as fast as you could. Now standing in the middle of the street, the ground and buildings around you were still shaking. The massive flame wall was gone and you could see Theodore’s stronghold starting to break apart. Stefano looked into the sky.

“Is it  _ snowing _ ?” He asked. You looked up as well, and it was. Actual snow. In Union. Right after it had been nearly ninety degrees earlier. But before you had time to say anything about it, the road between you cracked and you could feel the ground beneath your feet shifting and falling away. You reached out for Stefano as you began to fall along with the ground below you.

“Y/N!” He cried as he reached out. But you were already too far away.

* * *

 

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	22. Unlikely Allies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian tries to catch up with Myra.

Sebastian woke up and looked around. He was still in Theodore’s stronghold, but everything was white now. Pulsating piles of slime could be seen in corners and was that… snow he saw? He tried to remember what had happened as he looked up at where the ceiling used to be.

“Myra…?” He couldn’t see her anywhere. He attempted to sit up, grimacing. His whole body ached, and frankly, he was surprised he was still alive. He stood and pushed open the large door leading back into what used to be Theodore’s throne room. Sebastian couldn’t believe what was in front of him. Half of the room was broken off and he could see larger pieces of Union that had broken away either floating in the sky, or completely gone. 

“Oh God… there’s almost nothing left of this place.” He whispered as he walked forward. “What are you trying to do, Myra?” It was then he remembered Y/N and Stefano back in Sanctuary Hotel. Sebastian pulled his communicator off of his belt, trying to get any kind of signal, but there was only static. “Shit. I really hope she’s okay.” But if he had to guess, she was probably dead. By any luck though, Stefano would be too. Sebastian put the communicator back on his belt and pressed forward, trying to make a path out of whatever was left. He took one wrong step and heard a crack, next thing he knew he was on the floor below. Sebastian groaned as he slowly stood up. He couldn’t take too much more of this being tossed around and slammed into things. 

“Dammit.” He grumbled, starting to walk again. “Myra… where did you go?” He made his way into another broken building, the room was full of smoke. “What is this?” He pulled out his flashlight and used it to look around. Something was moving at the other end of the room. “Myra.” Sebastian clicked off his flashlight and ran towards her. She stopped and turned towards him, her hood covering most of her face. “It’s over. Let’s get Lily and leave this place before we’re stuck here forever.” he told her as the smoke began to clear. “We can have our family back!” She stood for a second then slowly walked towards him. “Please…” He took a step back. “I know you’re still in there…” Her hand shifted into the large ice stake and she shoved it towards him. Sebastian ducked out of the way. “Stop it!” She tried again, he dodged. “Dammit! You have to listen to me!” Myra paused mid-strike. She grabbed her head in pain and backed away, groaning. “Myra? What’s wrong?” He stepped towards her, she was flashing between her normal self and herself in the white cloak. She cried out in pain, doubling over. “You’ve gotta fight it!” She reached out towards him, staying as her normal self in the white sweater. 

“I can’t…” She wasn’t looking at him. “I have to protect Lily…” She began flashing between the two again, trying to catch her breath and still holding onto her head.

“You already did, Myra.” Sebastian told her. “Stefano can’t hurt her.” She started walking away from him. “Neither can Theodore. They’re dead.” Well, he wasn’t sure about one, but he wouldn’t let him get close to Lily, that’s for sure.

“Yes… Good.” Myra stopped walking and turned to look at Sebastian, letting go of her head. “Go, Sebastian. Now. Leave.” She turned and walked away, changing back to the version of herself in the white cloak. Sebastian shook his head.

“No. I’m not leaving you and Lily in this place!” He ran forward and was stopped by a wall of snow and smoke coming between him and Myra. He ran through it, but was stopped short at the ledge of the building. Where had she gone? He took a couple steps back and looked around at the ground below. He saw her calmly walking down the street away from him. “Myra!” He called. “Shit. What is she trying to do?” Sebastian made his way out of the building and down a long set of staircases. He headed towards Myra and once he had made it onto the street and where he thought she was within earshot, he called out again. “Myra!”

She kept walking forward and the path behind her closed off as the road turned into large spears. Lost started appearing out of the slime that littered the streets. Sebastian ducked behind a van.

“I gotta get rid of these things… Maybe then I can get to her.” Sebastian hurriedly stealth killed the closest one of the lost then pulled out his hand gun taking down another in a matter of seconds. They seemed to be normal run of the mill lost. Aside from some of them had hands where their foot should have been or hands sticking out of their shoulders or other weird places. It was as Sebastian shot another one down that he remembered Stefano’s gallery back in city hall. The one he said he couldn't take credit for. Some of those crystallized lost had the same deformities. They had to have been made by Myra.  _ Dammit _ . Stefano must have seen Myra in here but not known who she was. 

Sebastian shot another lost and heard a shattering noise. He looked over at the blockade of spears to see that is was now a pile of rubble and dust.

“Alright… I hope she hasn't gone far.” He pressed on and saw her walking in front of him. “Myra! Stop!” He ran forward, reaching out for her. The ground he stepped onto began to shift, causing him to fall. Sebastian then slid off of the piece of road onto another part of town. And there were more lost. Of course. “Oh shit. More of them? I don't have time for this.” Just as Sebastian was about to kill one he saw a cloud of blue smoke, next thing he knew, the lost’s throat had been slashed. Stefano? Well, that dream didn’t last long. Sebastian ducked behind a car to see if it happened again. There was another cloud of blue smoke and there appeared Stefano, looking pretty worse for wear. He stabbed the lost in front of him a few times then pushed it over and shifted away again. A lost started wandering a bit too close to Sebastian and he stood and shot it in the head. As the body fell, Sebastian felt someone grab onto him and soon there was a knife at his throat. Luckily, he was quick enough to get his gun aimed at the other’s head.

“Give me one reason I should not kill you right here.” Stefano told him.

“I could say the same thing.” Sebastian grumbled. “I don’t have time for your  _ games _ .” Stefano chuckled and pulled his knife away. Sebastian quickly stepped away from him, keeping his gun at the ready. “Where's Y/N?” Stefano was silent. “Where are they, Stefano?” His voice was more stern this time. Stefano stayed silent. Wait… was he  _ crying _ ? He wasn't making any noise, but tears we're falling down his face. Only maybe two things could make  _ Stefano Valentini _ cry. “Shit…” Sebastian pinched the bridge of his nose. After all they’d been through. Y/N was gone. 

Another lost wandered towards them, groaning. Sebastian didn't even look up as he shot it. The two men stood in silence for a couple minutes before Sebastian shook his head and finally spoke. “I have to find Myra.” 

“Myra?” Stefano asked, wiping off his face.

“My wife.” Sebastian started to walk away, Stefano followed, having to phase-shift every couple of steps to give his legs a break, since he had lost his cane. 

“The woman in the cloak?” Stefano asked. “An artist of her  _ level _ married someone as dull as  _ you _ ?” Sebastian turned around, aiming his gun. Stefano stopped.

“Y/N isn't here anymore to take a bullet for you. I’d watch my words.” Sebastian warned him then shot another lost just over Stefano’s shoulder. There was another shattering noise and once again a blockade of spears had broken down. Sebastian ran forward and jumped down the ledge. Stefano looked at the body behind himself on the ground then appeared beside Sebastian. They could see Myra walking in the distance. “There she is.” Sebastian whispered. Another blockade formed behind her as some sort of large slime creature climbed up an electrical pole. The creature broke the pole and fell down.The pole crashed onto it and became part of it, wires swinging off of it and sparking.

“Magnificent!” Stefano clapped, pulling out his camera. The creature hissed and slammed down the electrical pole, sending sparks flying from it.

“Oh god…” Sebastian ducked behind a car as Stefano shifted out of the way and snapped a picture. 

“I think I would call it…  _ Effigy _ .” He smiled and teleported away as the creature charged towards him. Sebastian pulled out Torres’ assault rifle and fired at a glowing orange spot on the creature. From Sebastian’s experience, he knew it had to be some sort of weak point. “What are you  _ doing _ !?” Stefano shouted at Sebastian from behind the creature. The effigy turned and ran towards Stefano who periodically shifted _ just _ out of the way between taking photos.

“Good, he's distracting it.” Sebastian thought aloud and reloaded. Sebastian aimed for the orange spot again and fired. The creature shrieked and slammed down the electrical pole, sending sparks everywhere. Sebastian reloaded and fired, he could hear Stefano taking more pictures. After one more round of bullets, the effigy collapsed hissing and shrieking as it fell. The blockade Myra had put up fell to the ground and Stefano appeared next to the corpse of the creature to get close up photos.

“Please let that be the last of it…” Sebastian ran forward and climbed down the next ledge, running towards Myra. “Myra! Where are you going!?” She turned to look at him.

“I won't let you hurt Lily.”

“Hurt her?” Sebastian couldn't believe what he was hearing, he walked closer as Myra turned away. “I would never do that! I love her!” He shouted. Myra crouched down, laying her hands on the ground. She scoffed.

“Your love can't protect her. Only I can do that.” She looked over her shoulder at him. “I told you to leave!” She stood and turned towards him, raising her arms to the sky. The world began to shake, cars and signs floating into the air. Myra crouched again, pulling her arms in close. When she opened them, a shockwave was sent from her and the parking lot they were standing in broke apart, everything falling in towards Myra. Sebastian looked around for something to hold onto as he tried to stay standing. A car flew past his head and he ducked. He tried to walk away from where everything was falling, but the ground cracked. Knocked off balance, he fell to his stomach. The piece of concrete he was on shifted and he began sliding. Sebastian tried to grab on to the rails of the fence next him, his hand just hitting all of them. When he was finally able to grab on to one and he pulled himself on to the fence started to climb it like a ladder. It was then that a large sign fell and hit the fence, breaking it away from the concrete. Sebastian couldn’t help but be knocked off by more falling debris and he fell into the void below.

* * *

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	23. House on the Hill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone wakes up surrounded by snow.

When Sebastian woke up he was laying on snow. Around him lay cars, pieces of buildings and other debris. It seemed like he was on a never ending snowy plain. He groaned as he stood up, pain searing through him.

“Can't let her take Lily…” he told himself. He stumbled forward, looking around for any sign of Myra. When suddenly, he saw it. “Is that… our house?” On a hill in the distance was a decent sized, familiar, two-story house. It had to be theirs. “She must be there. I can't stop now…”

 

~*~*~*~

 

When you had woken up, all you could see was snow. You were laying down in it, still holding on tightly to Rozalia. You checked her over and she appeared to be okay. She was awake and was watching you. You tried to remember what had happened as you sat up. Looking around, you could see debris from the town. Oh right. You fell. The image Stefano reaching out for you flashed through your memory. 

You shook your head and groaned as you stood. You looked around. Where were you? What was this place? When you looked at the sky, you expected to see the remaining pieces of Union, but all that was there was what looked like a black hole. You must have fallen through it, you guessed. You looked around some more. Finally you spotted a perfectly intact house in the distance and started towards it. If you were lucky, someone would be there. Maybe Sebastian? Since, everyone else in Union had probably fallen down here too.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian trekked on, surprised that even though he was surrounded by snow, it wasn't really cold. His communicator beeped for a resonance point, and as he walked closer, the apparitions of Myra, Kidman, and Theodore appeared.

“Their guard is down.” Myra said. “Union is running so smoothly that they're not monitoring it as closely. It's now or never.”

“We should be able to free Lily before they know we're there.” Theodore chimed in. “Once she's out, we’ll be as good as invisible.”

“...Are you sure about this Theodore?” Kidman asked. “Someone as high ranking as you… if you get caught…”

“I’ve made my decision, Kidman.” He told her. “I can no longer stand idly by while they use that poor girl for their selfish needs…” The apparitions faded away.

“Son of a bitch knew what he was doing before he even came in here…” Sebastian grumbled as he pressed forward.

 

~*~*~*~

 

When Stefano woke up, he couldn’t remember what had happened. One minute he was taking pictures of the effigy, the next he was falling. Was it another earthquake? He slowly stood and brushed off the thin layer of snow in his hair and in the folds of his clothes. Looking around, all he could see for miles was snow and the broken remains of Union. He reached for his camera, but it was gone.

“ _ Dammit! _ ” Stefano growled. He must have dropped it when he was falling, and who knows where it ended up. He sighed and looked around. It couldn’t have gone too far. He attempted to phase-shift a couple of feet in one direction, but nothing happened. He tried again in another direction to no avail. Stefano swore under his breath. Wherever he decided to go, he would have to actually walk. That wasn’t going to be easy. He couldn’t even remember the last time he simply  _ walked _ somewhere without any help. 

He started off in one direction, stumbling a little due to his legs still being weak. In the distance he saw- Wait… was that… his camera! He ran over to it, tripping and falling then sliding the last few feet towards it. He pulled it out of the snow, quickly brushing it off and looking it over. It seemed okay.

“ _ Grazie Dio _ !” Stefano kissed the camera. If nothing else, at least his camera was okay.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian had come upon another set of apparitions. The same three from before.

“Esmeralda is in Union and waiting for instruction.” Kidman said, holding onto Myra’s shoulders.

“Let’s go, Myra. It’s time.” Theodore told her, standing to the side.

“Are you sure about this, Myra? Once you become the Core, you’ll be…” Kidman couldn’t bring herself to finish.

“I know.” Myra assured her. “But if I don’t, they’ll just hunt Lily down and put her back inside. I can’t let that happen.” She sighed. “Just promise me you’ll get Lily to Sebastian when this is all over.”

“I promise, Myra.” Kidman told her. “I guess this is goodbye…” The two women hugged as the apparitions faded.

“Myra was planning on becoming the Core?” Sebastian asked, taking in what he just saw. “Why?” He kept walking towards his house, even though it still seemed so far away. His communicator beeped again and he ran towards the signal. Only two apparitions appeared this time.

“There she is. Quickly, Theodore, let’s…” It was Myra. “What are you doing?” Theodore was pointing a gun at her.

“Did you really think I was going to let you destroy Mobius?” He asked. “They may be short-sighted, but they’re far too valuable to me. When I control them…” He paused. “When I  _ control _ STEM… only then will they reach their full potential. Now give her to me.”

“ _ Over my dead body _ .” Myra growled.

“...If that’s the way you want it…” The apparitions faded away.

“That’s when it happened. When this place started to fall apart…” Sebastian whispered as he pressed on.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Stefano had finally managed to get to a higher vantage point and used his camera’s zoom to help him look for anyone else or anywhere to go. For all he knew, he was just going to be stuck here, in limbo. But it wouldn’t have been too terrible. No, he had his camera. ...And his reason for living was gone anyway. He had no need to go back to Krimson City. Nothing waiting for him.  _ No one _ waiting for him. Stefano knew he wouldn’t be missed. The Krimson City serial killer was gone. People would be grateful. 

He sighed, looking through his lens yet again. Was that… A  _ house _ he saw in the distance? He should probably head towards it, even if only to get some shelter from the snow. He started off, stumbling and limping. At least he had gotten  _ some _ of his strength back, but it was still going to be a long trek.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian reached another area with a residual memory. Myra and Theodore again.

“Run, Lily! Hide!” Myra shouted. “I’ll find you, I promise!”

“What do you think you’re doing, Myra?” Theodore asked.

“I’m protecting my daughter!” 

“You fool! The power she commands… you don’t understand…”

“No.  _ You _ don’t understand what I’ll do to keep her safe!” Myra shot at Theodore and ran off.

“Damn you, Myra!” Theodore clutched tightly onto his cane for support. “You can’t run from me! I’ll find you!” The memory faded.

“You did it, Myra. You kept her safe.” Sebastian whispered, he was almost to the house now. “But now you’re putting her in danger…” He ran the rest of the way up to his old home. Myra stood, cloaked, staring at the building. Specifically up at Lily’s bedroom window. Sebastian quietly walked up. “Myra? Is it you?” She slowly turned around, changing between her normal self and the cloaked one. She stopped on her normal self.

“Sebastian…” she smiled. Sebastian smiled and ran forward, as he did, Myra ran backward. He stopped.

“Why are you fighting me, Myra?” 

“You… don’t understand…” She slowly backed up then turned to look at the house. “This is our new home. Lily will be safe here.” She looked up towards Lily’s bedroom. “Happy. Free from fear. Free from pain.” It was silent for a moment before Sebastian sighed, putting his head down.

“No, Myra. This isn’t real.” He told her and looked back up at her. “Pain is part of real life. And so is love.” He took a step forward. “If she stays in here, she won’t live a life free from fear… Because she won’t be living a life at all.” Myra quickly turned around.

“You don’t understand!” She cried. “The things they did to her…  _ I _ can protect her.” She marched towards the home.

“No, please!” Sebastian followed. “Let me take her out of here! Let’s do it together!” Myra stopped and Sebastian took another step forward. “We can be a family again!” He yelled. Myra slowly looked down, then grabbed her head in pain, starting to change forms again. 

“No! I won’t let anyone take her from me!” She turned around as her cloaked self, her hand as the ice stake. Sebastian shook his head.

“No…” He took a step back. “Please, Myra…” She slowly walked forward. “We still have time! We can leave!” He pulled out his handgun, shaking his head again. “I’m not gonna leave Lily here…” Myra kept walking slowly towards him. Sebastian glanced up at Lily’s window then looked back at Myra. “Please…”

“Anyone who tries…” Myra whispered, stepping forward. “Must  _ die _ !” 

“Don’t make me do this!” Sebastian shook his head, aiming his gun. Myra ran forward to strike. He pulled the trigger.

* * *

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	24. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You finally find everyone else.

A gunshot filled the air around you, echoing off of every building and hill. Did that come from the house? You were still a little ways away, but you could tell it must have. Was it Sebastian? You sped up your pace, and if you didn’t have Rozi in your arms, you would have run. 

 

~*~*~*~

 

A gunshot echoed around Stefano. It was probably that  _ neanderthal _ , Sebastian. If he was still alive, then that meant… wait… Y/N and Rozalia might be  _ alive _ ! Since they had fallen, they may have fallen down here, like he did! Stefano picked up the pace, and headed towards the origin of the shot (which seemed to be where he was headed anyway). The house.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Sebastian opened his eyes to see Myra’s stake only inches from his face. He had successfully shot her in the forehead. The white slimy part of her face cracked and began to break away, revealing glowing red orbs all across her forehead. She took a few steps back and began moving her head different ways as the orbs pulsed. She paused and screamed, sending a shockwave through the air. Sebastian used his arms to cover his face and tried to stay stable. The screaming stopped and he slowly lowered his arms to look at Myra. He was awestruck to see she had changed into what appeared to be a giant, rotting version of herself(only the torso though). She slammed her massive hand down and roared, her silvery blonde hair flying in the wind behind her.

“My god…” Sebastian whispered as he took in his surroundings. They were no longer at the house, but still in limbo, and he stood in a pond of white slime. Myra straightened her back then slammed her hands down again. Sebastian had to run out of the way not to be crushed. 

“You hurt me!” Myra yelled, her voice being echoed by a deeper version. “You’ll hurt HER too! I won’t let you!”

“Goddammit, Myra!” Sebastian yelled. “Stop this! Think about what you’re doing!” She slammed her hand down and a wave of slime came rushing for him. He ducked out of the way and pulled out his shotgun.

“Where were you when we NEEDED YOU?!” She yelled, slamming her other hand down. Sebastian jumped out of the way of another wave and looked at Myra. He didn’t want to do this. He loved her. He didn’t want to hurt her. He noticed that her stomach was glowing orange. A weak point. He aimed and fired. A layer of skin broke away revealing an orange glowing heart. “Argh!” Myra covered the area with one hand and tried to crush Sebastian again.

“I… I don’t want to do this to you, Myra!” Sebastian cried as she moved her hand away from her heart. He fired again. Her stomach swelled and exploded. A bunch of spider-like babies crawled towards Sebastian from her. He pulled out his crossbow and used a shock bolt, the electricity killing them all. Myra screamed and her shoulders began glowing bright orange. 

“You can’t stop me!” She slammed her hand down, just about burying Sebastian in the wave of slime that came his way.

“Please, Myra!” Sebastian cried. “I know you’re still in there! You’ve got to stop!” He aimed at one of her shoulders and fired. 

“Leave us alone!” Myra sounded like she was crying, if she could even cry in that state. Sebastian fired a few more times, her shoulder exploded and her arm fell off. The severed arm wriggled around then finally reached out for Sebastian, rocketing towards him and grabbing him. “You can’t escape me!” He struggled to get his arm free and fired at the, still glowing, joint where it had broken off of her. The hand dropped Sebastian as it fell limp and he rolled through the slime. He slowly stood up, his body protesting, and looked back at Myra. She was growing some sort of tentacle with a claw on the end behind her back. The sky suddenly grew darker as the wind blew stronger. “YOU… CAN… NOT… HAVE… HER!”

 

~*~*~*~

 

The wind picked up around you as the sky grew dark. You held on tightly to Rozalia, who whined and wiggled a little in your arms. 

“What’s happening?” You wondered aloud. You thought you could hear yelling in the distance and picked up the pace. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t good. But there were  _ definitely _ other people here. Wherever  _ here _ was.

“Wait!” Was that…? You turned and looked around, you could hardly see anything through the snow blowing through the air. 

“Where are you?” You called out. 

“Y/N!” You were starting to make out a figure coming closer, holding their hands in front of them to block the wind. It was Stefano. You never thought you’d be so happy to see someone in your entire life. You went towards him as fast as you could and he held open his arms. You almost knocked him over, but he wrapped his arms around you and Rozi, holding you both tightly. He pushed you back a little from him and kissed you. With the shock of the kiss and the strong wind you almost fell over, but Stefano held onto your shoulders to steady you. This was the first time he had kissed you since you ran away. And this kiss was different. Actually… meaningful. The two of you probably would have stayed like that for a lot longer if Rozi hadn’t started to whine. Stefano pulled away and took her from your arms, kissing her forehead. ...Was his face wet? Was it from the snow? Or was he actually…  _ crying _ ? You could hear more yelling in the distance. Right, the task at hand, getting to the house. 

“Stefano, we have to go.” You told him. 

“To the house?”

“You saw it too?”

“ _ Of course _ . That’s why I’m here.”

“Right. Well, I think Sebastian may be there. We have to go.” He nodded and the two of you pressed on, holding hands so you wouldn’t get separated in the storm.

 

~*~*~*~

 

“I don’t want to do this!” Sebastian yelled, reloading. Myra shoved her large claw into the slime and suddenly towers of hands made of slime were coming for Sebastian. He ran, trying to get away from them and fired at her other shoulder, which he could see still glowing. She picked up her tentacle claw and slammed it down again, trying to crush him. He fired again.

“No! I won’t give up!” Myra cried. Sebastian fired again at her shoulder which exploded, causing her arm to fall off. “Arggh! No!” Her head and tentacle slammed into the pond of slime. When she straightened her back, half of her face was missing, as if it was melting away. “Must… protect… Lily!” Faintly, under the melting layers of her face, Sebastian could see another orange glow.

“Forgive me, Myra…” He reloaded and fired as many times as he could. Every shot hitting its target. She screamed and arched her back, her tentacle writhing. She then leaned forward, falling motionless. Sebastian stared up at her, breathless. She cracked her neck then leaned forward, roaring as her tentacle shot up and fell in one last attempt to crush Sebastian. He jumped out of the way as it crashed down beside him. The sky brightened again and wind died down as he watched as the entirety of Myra turned to more white slime and melted away to join the rest of the pond. Sebastian slowly walked up to the edge and crouched down. Picking up some of the liquid in his hands, he watched it drain out between his fingers. He shook his head, trying to hold back his tears. Sebastian stood and began wading through the pond. He just wanted a sign of her. Anything at all. It was when he was waist deep that he noticed a pale hand with a wedding ring on sticking up out of the pond.

“Myra…” Sebastian trudged over and pulled her up. Myra was her normal self again. Just as beautiful as she always had been. Her blonde hair was pulled back into her signature bun and she was wearing her favorite pearl earrings. Sebastian wiped the liquid off of her face, hoping,  _ praying _ that she was alive.

 

~*~*~*~

 

When the wind died down you could finally see again and let go of Stefano’s gloved hand. He reached out after you did, latching back on to your hand. You turned to look at him.

“What?” He asked. You looked down at your hands then back up at his face. He narrowed his eye. “I’m not  _ risking _ losing you _ again _ .” You were kind of surprised to hear him say that and you could feel your face growing red. He glanced over your shoulder, down the hill. “There’s someone down there.” He told you as he handed you Rozi and pulled out his camera. You looked in the direction he had looked and could just barely make out part of a figure who wore dark clothes trudging through some… white water? Honestly, it looked like milk, but you were pretty sure that wasn’t what it was. Stefano used his camera to look at the figure, using the zoom kind of like a telescope.

“Why don’t we just go down there?” You asked.

“It could be another lost.” Stefano told you, adjusting his lens. You looked down at the figure again to see them pulling something out of the …water. Stefano lowered his camera. “It’s Sebastian.” You didn’t even wait to start running towards him. “Wa-Y/N!” Stefano tried to catch up. 

 

Sebastian gently laid Myra down on the snow.

“Myra… Please…” He begged. She blinked a few times then slowly opened her eyes. “I’m so sorry…” Sebastian whispered, shaking his head. “I didn’t want to….” Myra shook her head a little. 

“No.” She whispered. “I… I couldn’t control myself…” She was starting to cry. “You did the right thing. Thank you. I’m… so glad you’re alive. You have to…” She was struggling to find the words. “Take Lily.” She looked over at the house, which was on a hill a little ways away. “Get her out of here…”

“I’m getting us  _ all _ out of here.” Sebastian shook his head and started to pull her up. “Come on!”

“It’s too far. Leave me.” Myra cried as he picked her up. “Just… get Lily.” She turned her head to look at him. “Leave me!” Sebastian froze.

“No! I won’t leave you again!” He told her, hoisting her up more and starting to walk.

“You have to!” He stopped and looked at Myra’s face. All he could see in her blue eyes was pain. “Go.” She whispered.

 

When you reached Sebastian he was holding a blonde woman close to him, and they were staring at each other. Who was she? They both looked like they were going to cry.

“Sebastian…” You said as you walked closer, catching your breath. Rozi squirmed in your arms, she didn’t like the running you had just done. Sebastian and the woman slowly turned to look at you as you heard Stefano catching up.

“Y/N, you’re alive.” Sebastian smiled weakly, but still looked like he was going to cry. Upon seeing Stefano, the woman looked angry and held tighter onto Sebastian’s shoulders. You slowly walked closer. Sebastian turned to the woman. “He’s on our side now. It’s okay-”

“Lily needs you now.” She cut him off. Her voice sounded familiar, but you couldn’t place where you had heard it. Sebastian stared at her for a moment then turned to you. 

“Y/N, please, help.. I…” He looked up towards the house. You understood now. This woman was Myra, Sebastian’s wife. You had heard her voice a long time ago when you were first headed to Stefano. You handed Rozalia to Stefano who stood silently behind you, observing. You walked closer and took Myra, having her lean on you for support. You weren’t very strong, but you could still support her. 

“Go. Get Lily and let’s get out of here.” You told Sebastian.

“We’ll meet you there.” Myra added with a small smile. He slowly nodded and went on towards the house. You looked at Myra, who seemed to be gaining some strength, and gave her a small smile.

“It’s nice to finally meet you.” You told her as you started to walk. “Your husband is a great man.” You heard Stefano scoff behind you as he started to follow. You shot him a glare from over your shoulder and Myra smiled at you.

“He really is.”

* * *

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	25. Sacrifices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes sacrifices must be made for the greater good.

Sebastian ran up to the front door. 

“Please be safe, Lily…” He whispered then pushed open the door. “Lily!” He cried. “She’s gotta be in her room upstairs…” He ran up the stairs to her room and slowly pushed open the familiar white, butterfly decorated door. He quietly took a couple steps forward. There she was. Lily. She was in bed, sleeping, wearing her favorite pink pajamas. Sebastian couldn’t help but smile as he walked up to her bed. “Lily…” he whispered, sitting on the edge of the bed next to her. “My sweet little girl…” He laid his hand on her shoulder and she slowly opened her eyes, looking up at him.

“Dad?” She asked. He helped her sit up.

“It’s me, Lily. I’m here.” She looked at him for a moment.

“Is it really you?” She asked.

“Shh. It’s really me.” He smiled at her. “I’m here to take you home.”

“You mean we’re not home?” Lily gave him a confused look. Sebastian returned a weak smile and shook his head.

“No, baby. But we will be soon.” She nodded weakly.

“So tired…” He petted her hair with his hand.

“Go back to sleep. When you wake up, we’ll be safe again.” She closed her eyes and he laid her head on his shoulder. He gently stood up, lifting her with him and walked out of the room. As he was carrying her downstairs, he heard the doorknob click. The door slowly opened and he reflexively tightened his grip on Lily. It was Stefano and Rozalia, upon seeing Lily he gave Sebastian a small smile (which was quite unsettling for Sebastian) and stepped back.

 

You and Myra walked forward and you could hear Myra gasp when she saw the girl in Sebastian’s arms. Lily. Myra was so happy. Sebastian walked the rest of the way down the stairs.

“I’ve got her! Come on. Let’s get the hell out of here.” Myra shook her head. You, Stefano and Sebastian looked at her, confused.

“I’m sorry, Sebastian. I can’t.” Her voice cracked as she said it. 

“Yes you can!” You told her.

“I’ll carry you if I have too.” Stefano sternly told her. You  _ had _ to have heard him wrong. But no, Sebastian and Myra looked just as shocked. Myra shook her head.

“No…” She told you. “Mobius has to be stopped.” Myra took her arm off of your shoulder and limped into the house. Sebastian followed as you and Stefano stepped in the doorway, closing the door behind you. You weren’t sure what to say.

“Screw Mobius.” Sebastian told Myra. “We’ve lost too much time to them already! We can get away, just the three of us!” She turned to look at him, one hand over her heart. “We’ll go someplace where they’ll never find us!” Myra stepped forward, placing a hand on Sebastian’s cheek.

“There’s nowhere to hide. They’re everywhere.” She explained. “Lily will  _ always _ be in danger… Unless I destroy them.”

“Okay, fine, I’ll wait. Once Mobius is gone, we’ll-”

“It doesn’t work that way, Sebastian.” Myra took her hand off of his face and grabbed his shoulder. “It can only be done from _ inside _ .” She stepped away from him and you could feel the tears welling up in your eyes. “STEM is more than just this place. All of Mobius are connected to it via the chips in their heads.” Myra limped over to the couch and grabbed on to it for support. Sebastian shook his head. “Once I assume the power of the Core, I can transmit a signal just as Union collapses.” Myra turned to look at Sebastian, who looked away. “A signal that can take down Mobius once and for all.” Now you remembered. When Esmeralda was dying.  _ The Plan _ . Sebastian shook his head again and looked back at her.

“But… we’re finally together again…” He pleaded.

“There’s no other choice.” Myra looked down. “This is part of The Plan. It always has been.” She looked back up at him. “I’m sorry…” Sebastian walked closer to her.

“Myra…” She stepped toward him and laid her hand on Lily’s head. 

“Shhh. Just… promise to take care of the little one.” Sebastian couldn’t bring himself to look her in the eyes. “Never let her forget how much her mother loved her.” Myra started to cry as Sebastian looked at her. You could feel your own cheeks growing wet as your tears overflowed. You turned and looked at Rozalia,  _ your _ little one, who had fallen asleep in Stefano’s arms. Hoffman’s words echoed through your head.

“You can’t take Rozalia with you when we leave STEM…” You bit your lip. Stefano looked down at you, and gave you what you supposed was meant to be a sympathetic look. He still didn’t know.

“Myra,” Sebastian whispered. You and Stefano turned back to look at them. “There’s so much I want to say to you-” Myra put her finger up to his lips to quiet him, then pulled it away and pulled him into a gentle kiss. Stefano quickly but gently handed Rozi to you and pulled out his camera, quietly taking a picture. You weren’t sure why.

“You don’t have to say anything. I’ve been watching you all this time.” She told him after she broke the kiss. “I know how you’ve suffered. What they did to you. What  _ I _ did to you. You didn’t ask for any of this.” Sebastian shook his head. “And you’ve been into hell twice for it.” Twice? You were confused as to what she meant. “It’s time for you to leave now. To live the life that was taken from you.” Sebastian stared at her for a moment, looking like there was more he wanted to say.

“I love you, Myra.” He said it simply, sweetly. Myra was silent while she fought back tears.

“I love you, too. Both of you.” She turned away from him. “That’s why I’m doing this. But there’s no more time. You have to go.” She raised her voice. “ _ Now _ .” Sebastian stood there for a second then adjusted how he was holding Lily. He turned around to face you and Stefano, who had already put his camera away. Sebastian looked down, took a deep breath and looked up at you. Then he looked at Rozalia. Then back up at you. Any strength he had just mustered fell from his face. Apparently he remembered Hoffman’s words too. He started to weakly shake his head. 

“You can’t…” Sebastian whispered. Stefano looked between the two of you, confused. You looked up at him, feeling the tears falling down your face.

“I…  _ we _ can’t take Rozalia.” You told him as plainly as you could. He furrowed his brow, starting to shake his head. Myra turned to look at the three of you, her own tears finally falling.

“Why- I don-” You looked down at Rozi, who slept peacefully in your arms. You couldn’t help but sob.

“She wouldn’t be real, Stefano.” Sebastian said it quietly. “She’d be trapped in Y/N’s head forever.” Stefano looked shocked and you could see a tear roll down his cheek. Myra understood completely. She took a few steps forward, walking past Sebastian to you. You looked up, barely able to see through the tears in your eyes. Myra hugged you, and you understood. 

“Take care of her.” You whispered to her. She nodded.

“Take care of Sebastian and Lily.” She whispered to you. You nodded, and she took Rozalia from your arms, stepping back. Stefano and Sebastian watched you both silently, unable to hear your exchange. You petted Rozi’s head and kissed her one last time. Sebastian took another deep breath then stepped forward past the three of you and Stefano.

“Let’s go. We don’t have much time.” He opened the door, glancing back one last time at Myra who gave him a small smile. Stefano kissed Rozalia’s head, a tear falling down his face. He whispered something in Italian to her then turned away, grabbing your hand and starting to walk out the door. You walked with him, but paused at the door, looking back at Myra. The two of you weakly smiled and nodded at each other. 

You turned and walked out of the door, catching up with Sebastian, who pulled out his communicator. Around you, the world was falling apart, mountains were crashing down and the storm was raging once again.

“Sebastian!” It was a young woman’s voice over the communicator.

“Kidman!” Oh, so that’s who that was. “I’ve got her! Where do I go?”

“Get to your room!” She told him.

“Okay. I’ve got Stefano- _ I know, _ we’ll talk about it later, and a civilian with me too. Where do they go?” 

“Same place, but I don’t know where they’re gonna wake up.”

“Alright. But Myra is staying behind. You know why.”

“...Okay. We don’t have much time.”

“We’re counting on you, Kidman…” Sebastian put his communicator back on his belt and adjusted how he was holding Lily. “Let’s go!” He started to run and you followed. Stefano was struggling to keep up and you looked back at him.

“Keep going! I’ll be fine!” He yelled.

“Don’t worry, Lily, we’re almost there.” You heard Sebastian say. Suddenly, a large chunk of earth fell in front of your small group. Sebastian turned, shielding Lily. “Oh my god…” The three of you ran around it. As you got closer to what you assumed was your destination, a bright glowing light, the ground cracked in front of you, large pieces falling away.

“Please…” You whispered as you three found another route and kept running. You were almost there. More pieces of earth crashed in around you, giving you all a narrow path to your destination.

“We’ll be home soon… Just gotta hang on…” Sebastian said as he got closer, you picked up the pace and caught up with him. Stefano was struggling, but doing the same. The three of you walked into what looked like a broken half of some sort of office. On some boxes in front of you was a cracked mirror, the cracks were glowing brightly. You felt the world shake around you and all of you looked around, including Lily, who had just woken up. The walls cracked and windows shattered. Next thing you knew, the floor was cracking. Okay, you’d done this once already, and you didn’t think there was some soft snow to fall into under this one. You grabbed Stefano’s arm and jumped to the more stable side closer to the mirror as the half you were standing on started to sink. Lily screamed. “No, Lily!” Sebastian threw her to you on the stable side and you caught her well enough that at least she didn’t slam into anything. The ground fell from under Sebastian and you could just barely see his fingers still holding on.

“Dad!” Lily cried. Stefano went to the edge and grabbed Sebastian’s other hand, helping him up. When Sebastian stood, he and Stefano shared a look of quiet understanding and he took Lily from you yet again.

“Hold on to me!” He told you. You and Stefano each grabbed one of Sebastian’s shoulders and Sebastian laid his hand on the mirror. It began glowing so bright you had to close your eyes, but you held on tightly.

 

Myra stood in the doorway of her home, watching the world crumble around her. She smiled down at the baby in her arms who stared at her with big grey eyes. Myra then looked towards the bright light in the distance.

“Lily. Sebastian. I love you both.” She whispered. “Now, you’ll be safe…” She smiled and stepped forward as the light in the distance faded and the world collapsed around her.

* * *

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	26. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally home.

Sebastian gasped as he woke up, trying to catch his breath. 

“Take it easy, Sebastian.” Kidman told him, she was smiling, standing next his STEM pod. “You’re safe now.” He sat up in the pod, the water splashing.

“Lily?” He looked around. “Where’s Lily?” He stood and climbed out, falling onto the floor. His legs were still weak from being asleep so long.

“I need your help to get her out.” Kidman told him as he weakly stood. “Stand over there.” She pointed at the center tank marked  _ Lily Castellanos _ . He nodded and stumbled over, slamming his hand on the tank.

“Hurry!” He yelled back to Kidman. She stepped up to a computer and started typing. The lights around the tank flashed and Sebastian stumbled back as he heard the machines working. As Kidman finished typing, the tank popped open, water spilling out of the crack onto the floor as the doors slowly opened. Sebastian stepped up to the tank again and put a hand on either side of the crack, crying out as he pried the doors apart. Inside, Lily was strapped into some sort of chair, asleep, wearing a t-shirt and scrub pants as well as a large Mobius name tag. Sebastian grabbed her under the arms and pulled her out of the tank. He laid her on the floor and supported her back with his hand. Lily groggily looked up at him.

“...Dad? Is it really you?” She asked. He couldn’t help but smile widely, nodding.

“Yes, Lily. It’s really me.” She closed her eyes for a moment then opened them again.

“I… I was having the worst nightmare.” She whispered.

“Shh. I know, Lily. But you’re awake now.” Sebastian shook his head. “The nightmare is over. There’s nothing to be scared of anymore.” Lily closed her eyes and leaned against him. He looked up at Kidman, who stood a couple feet away. “It really is, isn’t it?” He asked. “I’m not still inside there just thinking I’m…?” Kidman gave him a sympathetic smile.

“It really is over.” She told him. “Thanks to Myra.” Lily looked up at Kidman at the mention of her mom. Sebastian looked down, sorrowfully. “Come on,” Kidman told them starting to walk out of the room, smiling brighter. “Let’s get the hell out of here.” Lily looked up at Sebastian and smiled. He smiled back at her, picked her up, then followed Kidman out of the room.

 

~*~*~*~

 

You gasped as you woke up. Where were you? Still breathing heavily, you looked around. You were in what looked to be some kind of fancy bathtub filled with water and hooked up to computer. Thank god, at least you were fully clothed. But not in a Mobius uniform, or a fancy dress, just a t-shirt and sweatpants. Next to you was another bathtub and computer. Inside of it, the dead body of someone you had seen once or twice around Union. You gasped and looked to your other side. Same thing, just someone else. Your breathing picked up as you tried to get out of the tub. You fell flat onto the ground, your legs not wanting to work after having not been used for who knows how long. You groaned as you sat up and looked around some more. You were surrounded by bathtubs with dead bodies, hooked up to computers. And, you hadn’t even noticed what looked to be doctors and nurses dead around you. Specifically around  _ your _ bathtub. Probably because you were still alive and everyone else was dead, but you still couldn’t believe it. You crawled closer to look at them. However they had died, it couldn’t have been pleasant. Their eyes were bloodshot and it looked like blood had poured out of every hole in their head. You covered your mouth with your hand, gagging. You closed your eyes and tried to slow down your breathing, when you heard some splashing. It was very faint, probably all the way across the room. And it seemed like you were in some sort of humongous empty warehouse, so who knew how far away that was.

“Sebastian?” You called out. No response. “Stefano?” You said this a bit louder.

“Y/N?” It was faint, but you could still hear the Italian accent. You tried to stand up, grabbing onto the side of the tub to brace yourself.

“Stefano, where are you?” You called out, stumbling towards where you thought you heard the voice.

“I’m over here!” It was slightly louder this time, which was a good sign. You could hear some clattering noises as you drew closer, passing more bodies of the ones who didn’t make it out of Union.

“I’m coming!” You yelled. In the distance you could see a man using the tubs to brace himself, just like you were. He was wearing a nice collared shirt and dress pants. He had a beard, which threw you off. But his dark brown, almost black hair covered one of his eyes. It was definitely Stefano. He turned towards you and the second he noticed you, he started running. Well, sort of. He was still holding on to the tubs for support. You picked up the pace, your legs starting to remember how to work. You were getting a bit too confident though, and let go of the tubs. Only a couple steps later, you fell to the ground.

“Y/N!” Stefano closed the space between you. He kneeled in front of you and grabbed your shoulders. You looked up at him. It was only now you realised how exhausted he had begun to look in STEM. How beat up he had become. Stefano looked so much healthier now. But the beard and mustache were definitely a funny addition. He brushed your hair behind your ear. You hadn’t even noticed how long it had become. How long were you in STEM? What day was it? What  _ year _ was it? 

“Is it finally over?” You asked him.

“I suppose so.” He told you. He looked around for a minute, then back at you, but he was avoiding eye contact. “So, I guess this will be goodby-” You grabbed his head and kissed him. You never thought you would’ve done that. But there you were. Kissing a murderous psychopath of your own free will. It felt just like how it had in STEM. Except, his facial hair was softer than the usual stumble on his face. You broke the kiss. Stefano stared wide eyed at you, shocked.

“Is it really so surprising?” You asked him. “I mean, I  _ did _ have your b-” You cut yourself off. Rozalia. Little Rozalia Agnella Angeline Valentini. Your flower. Your  _ baby _ . You couldn’t help but start crying. Stefano pulled you closer, wrapping his arms around you as you sobbed.

“I will never create anything  _ remotely _ close to her _excellence_.” He whispered. “Rozalia was truly  _ my last masterpiece _ .”

* * *

Want to support this fic but not sure how? [Please donate to support the author’s continued education!](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gofundme.com%2Fmartinas-education&t=MmU2YjBkYzc2NmFmMjM5ZGE3ZDE0NmQyYzJkMzQ2ZmFkMmU0MjJlYSw3NmZhZWQ2MzUwMjQ1NmFlZWJiNWNiYmE3NDRkYzFjOWQ0MDg2ZDU5)

 


	27. Epilogue

“Are you sure they’re in there?” Sebastian asked, closing his car door, careful not to wake Lily who was asleep in the backseat.

“Positive.” Kidman shut her door and locked the van. “I was able to pull up their files and figure out which building they were in. Lucky for them, the same one.”

“Do I even want to know how many of these there are?” Sebastian grumbled.

“Probably not.” Kidman unlocked the door and opened it. Inside was another door and a number pad. She typed in the code and the door opened. Sebastian followed her in. 

They were in an observation room above a room with STEM pods as far as the eye could see. Each one with a corpse. Great. At least these ones wouldn’t jump up and try to kill them. ….Probably.

“These people were all citizens in Union?” Sebastian asked as they walked downstairs.

“Unfortunately. They all succumbed to the Lost Phenomenon.” 

“Or were killed by Theodore.” 

“Or Stefano.” Kidman pointed out. “You never explained why you saved him.” Sebastian was quiet for a minute.

“Guy’s gotta pay for the murders in Krimson.” He told her. She nodded. “Death would’ve been too kind.” They walked up to another door and Kidman swiped her Mobius ID card. The door beeped and opened. 

“Any idea which row they’re in?” Sebastian asked. Kidman shrugged.

“I’d assume by now that they’re awake and wandering around.”

 

You heard the door beep and hid behind the nearest bathtub. Stefano did the same.

“Y/N?” Could it be…? You peaked out from behind the tub. “Y/N? Are you here?” You slowly stood up.

“Sebastian?” He was standing maybe twenty bathtubs down the row with a young brunette woman in a leather jacket. Sebastian ran forward, grabbing you by the shoulders. He seemed like he might’ve hugged you, had he been the hugging type. He let go of you and turned to the young woman. Which, when you looked at her, she probably was close to your age. She walked up to you and held out a gloved hand.

“Juli Kidman.”

“Y/N L/N.” You shook her hand, glad to finally put a face to the name. Stefano finally came out from his hiding spot. 

“Stefano Valentini.” He butted in.

“I know.” Kidman told him sternly. He narrowed his eye. Sebastian looked a bit surprised to see Stefano with facial hair, but didn’t say anything. 

“Come on.” He said, starting to walk back towards the exit. “I don’t want to leave Lily for too long.” 

You and Stefano weakly followed Sebastian and Kidman to a van parked outside. The two of you climbed into the middle set of seats, careful not to wake Lily. You smiled when you saw her. She was just as cute as before, although, she was bigger and her hair was longer. How long was  _ she _ in STEM?

Kidman climbed into the driver’s seat and Sebastian got into the passenger’s. Everyone put on their seatbelts and Kidman started the car. As she pulled away from the building you could see that the sun was coming up. It was beautiful. You leaned back and closed your eyes as you listened to the sounds of the road and the radio playing softly.

 

_ But I won’t cry for yesterday.  _

_ There’s an ordinary world,  _

_ Somehow, I have to find. _

_ And as I try to make my way  _

_ To the ordinary world, _

_ I will learn to survive... _

 

* * *

 

Want to support this author but not sure how? [Please donate to support the author’s continued education!](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gofundme.com%2Fmartinas-education&t=MmU2YjBkYzc2NmFmMjM5ZGE3ZDE0NmQyYzJkMzQ2ZmFkMmU0MjJlYSw3NmZhZWQ2MzUwMjQ1NmFlZWJiNWNiYmE3NDRkYzFjOWQ0MDg2ZDU5)


	28. Author's Note

I just wanted to thank you all for sticking with me through this. For your support and kind words. 

“His Last Masterpiece” started as something I started to type for fun. I wasn’t even sure I was going to post it. But here we are, 56,036 words later. And really, I never imagined it would get over five kudos on here. But at current time, it has over  ** _one hundred_**. And I really can’t thank you guys enough. Every single person who takes the time to read any of this story means a lot to me.

Because of my love for you all, as well as my love for these characters and story line, I am going to write a sequel and or prequel to “His Last Masterpiece.”

Due to working a lot and going to school full time, I’m not sure how quickly I’ll get around to posting that. But, I will be answering any questions you have about “His Last Masterpiece” (as long as they don’t include spoilers for the other stories)

I also have open requests for writing and drawing at this time, so if there’s a scene you wanted to see drawn out, or my interpretation of the characters working with a certain prompt or anything like that, feel free to send me an ask on my [tumblr](http://quietest-rebellion.tumblr.com/). 

Once again, I really can’t thank you guys enough. This story and your support has really meant a lot to me. And I love each and everyone of you guys for helping me this far.

**September 6th Update:**

I've mainly been working on the prequel lately, although I have started the sequel as well. Currently the prequel has about 6 chapters. But, unfortunately I am a full time musical theatre student so I have like, negative time to work on anything. Again, if you guys have any questions, requests, suggestions, etc. please contact me on my tumblr, link provided above. (Yes, I _am_ open to suggestions for the prequel and sequel (but please don't be upset if I decide not use your idea)) [Here is a link to the tag where I am providing updates on my writing for this storyline.](http://quietest-rebellion.tumblr.com/tagged/fans-of-hlm-take-this-how-you-will) In case anyone would like to see those posts.

Thank you, guys, I love you all!


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